Polyethylene films are one of the most frequently used packaging materials in our society, due to their combination of strength and flexibility. An unintended consequence of this high use has been the ever-increasing accumulation of polyethylene films in the natural environment. Previous attempts to understand their deterioration have either focused on their durability using polymer analysis; or they have focused on changes occurring during outdoor exposure. Herein, this study combines those strategies into one, by studying the chemical and physical changes in the polyethylene structure in a laboratory using molecular weight and IR spectroscopic mapping analysis, combined with temperate UV-accelerated weathering cycles. This approach has been correlated to real-world outdoor exposure timeframes by parallel testing of the sample polyethylene films in Florida and France. The formation of polyethylene microparticles or polyethylene waxes is elucidated through comparison of drop point testing and molecular weight analysis.

Accelerated UV‑weathering cycles are predominately used for evaluating the durability of plastic materials, particularly polyethylene (PE) films. The point of failure for this testing is usually the loss of a physical property, such as the loss of tensile strength over time. For plastics designed to be instable under environmental conditions, the accelerated weathering cycles are yet to be defined and their correlation to outdoor exposure has yet to be made. This study demonstrates the utility of a newly defined temperate accelerated UV‑weathering cycle, recently codified in the British Standard PAS 9017:2020. In addition, the effectiveness of the laboratory weathering cycle has been correlated to real‑world outdoor exposure through simultaneous testing of the same samples at a specialist outdoor exposure site in Florida. The utility of the testing methodology and the performance of the polyethylene samples was demonstrated through the use of High Temperature Gel Permeation Chromatography (HT‑GPC) analysis. The data led to a detailed insight into the physico‑chemical changes occurring in the PE films upon exposure to environmental stimuli. By comparison, and surprisingly, the techniques employed appear to provide an insight into the processes in which secondary micro‑particles of PE are formed from macro‑polyethylene samples. The temperate accelerated UV‑weathering cycle over 14 days demonstrated an approximate correlation to 90 days of outdoor exposure in Florida for the PE film studied.