Biodegradability of photodegraded polymers. I. Development of experimental procedures

Jones, Philip H.; Prasad, Durga; Heskins, M.; Morgan, Marvin H.; Guillet, J. E.

doi:10.1021/es60095a010

Cited by 75 publications

(33 citation statements)

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“…41 When the polymer is irradiated with UV-light, the phenyl ring gets excited and the excitation energy is transferred to the nearest C-H bond. 45 In order to improve physical properties depending on the end use of the polymer, specic additives can be incorporated. 16 Cross-linking and chain scission are the results with the formation of ketones and olens.…”

Section: Polyethylene (Pe)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Pathways for degradation of plastic polymers floating in the marine environment

Gewert

Plassmann

MacLeod

2015

Environ. Sci.: Processes Impacts

1,263

808

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Each year vast amounts of plastic are produced worldwide. When released to the environment, plastics accumulate, and plastic debris in the world's oceans is of particular environmental concern. More than 60% of all floating debris in the oceans is plastic and amounts are increasing each year. Plastic polymers in the marine environment are exposed to sunlight, oxidants and physical stress, and over time they weather and degrade. The degradation processes and products must be understood to detect and evaluate potential environmental hazards. Some attention has been drawn to additives and persistent organic pollutants that sorb to the plastic surface, but so far the chemicals generated by degradation of the plastic polymers themselves have not been well studied from an environmental perspective. In this paper we review available information about the degradation pathways and chemicals that are formed by degradation of the six plastic types that are most widely used in Europe. We extrapolate that information to likely pathways and possible degradation products under environmental conditions found on the oceans' surface. The potential degradation pathways and products depend on the polymer type. UV-radiation and oxygen are the most important factors that initiate degradation of polymers with a carbon-carbon backbone, leading to chain scission. Smaller polymer fragments formed by chain scission are more susceptible to biodegradation and therefore abiotic degradation is expected to precede biodegradation. When heteroatoms are present in the main chain of a polymer, degradation proceeds by photo-oxidation, hydrolysis, and biodegradation. Degradation of plastic polymers can lead to low molecular weight polymer fragments, like monomers and oligomers, and formation of new end groups, especially carboxylic acids.

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Section: Polyethylene (Pe)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Pathways for degradation of plastic polymers floating in the marine environment

Gewert

Plassmann

MacLeod

2015

Environ. Sci.: Processes Impacts

1,263

808

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“…Guillet has formulated a copolymer of vinyl ketones and styrene and ethylene where the ketone groups are coordinated with the main polymer chain [55]. The obtained materialstrademarked as Ecolytewere shown to biodegrade and the degradation was followed using respirometry [56-581. Adding carbonyl compound groups to inert bulk polymers should be a successful way to obtain degradable polymers as the carbonyl absorbs UV-light readily.…”

Section: Photodegradable Bulk Polymersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Degradable polymers for the future

1995

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“…The potential to decompose plastics in various environments has been studied in order to investigate biological degradation as a solution to accumulating plastics in the environment (Albertsson and Karlsson, 1988;Artham et al, 2009;Jones et al, 1974;Ohtake et al, 1998;Pegram and Andrady, 1989). Biodegradation of PE in the environment occurs mainly through the biological activity of microorganisms after thermal oxidation (Albertsson et al, 1987;Tokiwa et al, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%