Release of harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from photo-degraded plastic debris: A neglected source of environmental pollution

Lomonaco, T; Manco, Enrico; Corti, Andrea; Nasa, Jacopo La; Ghimenti, Silvia; Biagini, Denise; Francesco, Fabio Di; Modugno, Francesca; Ceccarini, Alessio; Fuoco, Roger; Castelvetro, Valter

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.122596

Cited by 156 publications

(93 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…Artificial photodegradation has also been shown to lead to an increase in VOCs including carbonyls, lactones, esters, acids, alcohols, ethers, and aromatics [11].…”

Section: Degradation Of Plastic Materials To Microplasticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From plastics to microplastics and organisms

Bajt

2021

FEBS Open Bio

129

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The amount of plastic waste and microplastics released into marine environments has increased rapidly in recent decades. The durability of plastic materials results in major problems following their release into the environment. This study provides an overview of recent findings on issues related to plastic degradation, the accumulation of microplastics in mussels and fishes, and the toxicological effects associated with the ingestion of microplastics. These findings confirm the serious problem of slowly degrading plastics (which rarely degrade fully) in natural marine environments. Microplastics have become widespread pollutants and have been detected in mussels and fish around the world. Microplastic particles, whether virgin or with adsorbed pollutants on their surfaces, pose a health problem after being ingested by marine organisms. This paper ends by highlighting the need for certain improvements in studies of these phenomena.

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“…Artificial photodegradation has also been shown to lead to an increase in VOCs including carbonyls, lactones, esters, acids, alcohols, ethers, and aromatics [11].…”

Section: Degradation Of Plastic Materials To Microplasticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From plastics to microplastics and organisms

Bajt

2021

FEBS Open Bio

129

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“…The selected polymers are those most commonly found as microplastics in water bodies. The effects of photo-oxidative degradation on the polymer structure after 1, 2, 3, and 4 weeks of Solar Box exposure were evaluated using analytical pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS), while the VOCs released as a result of photo-oxidation were captured and analyzed with two distinct techniques: headspace (HS) with needle trap microextraction (NTME) combined with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis, as described by Lomonaco et al (2020), and selected ion flow tube-mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS), as described by La Nasa et al (2021). Some of the Py-GC/MS and SIFT results are presented and discussed below.…”

Section: Microplastics Photodegradation Under Simulated Environmental Agingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As an alternative approach, we have been adopting wet chemical techniques such as selective solvent extraction/ fractionation (for addition polymers such as polyolefins and polystyrene) or hydrolytic depolymerization (for condensation polymers such as polyethylene terephthalate, PET, and the two polyamides nylon 6 and nylon 6,6), along with quantification by liquid chromatography (size exclusion chromatography, SEC, for polymers, and reversed phase HPLC with UV and fluorescence detectors for depolymerization products), to perform an exhaustive and accurate quantitative and qualitative analysis of the total content of the main synthetic polymers present as MPs in marine and freshwater sediments (Ceccarini et al 2018;Castelvetro et al 2020;Castlvetro et al 2021). This approach is being further expanded into a multianalytical platform including a range of thermally assisted GC/MS (Lomonaco et al 2020) and SIFT-MS (selected-ion flow tube mass spectrometry, La Nasa et al 2021) techniques aimed not only at the determination of MPs and NPs in environmental matrices but also at investigating their degradation and degradation by-products that are released as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by the macro-and microplastic debris exposed to the environmental photooxidative conditions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

New methodologies for the detection, identification, and quantification of microplastics and their environmental degradation by-products

Castelvetro

Corti

Biale

et al. 2021

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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Sampling, separation, detection, and characterization of microplastics (MPs) dispersed in natural water bodies and ecosystems is a challenging and critical issue for a better understanding of the hazards for the environment posed by such nearly ubiquitous and still largely unknown form of pollution. There is still the need for exhaustive, reliable, accurate, reasonably fast, and cost-efficient analytical protocols allowing the quantification not only of MPs but also of nanoplastics (NPs) and of the harmful molecular pollutants that may result from degrading plastics. Here a set of newly developed analytical protocols, integrated with specialized techniques such as pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS), for the accurate and selective determination of the polymers most commonly found as MPs polluting marine and freshwater sediments are presented. In addition, the results of an investigation on the low molecular weight volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released upon photo-oxidative degradation of microplastics highlight the important role of photoinduced fragmentation at a molecular level both as a potential source of hazardous chemicals and as accelerators of the overall degradation of floating or stranded plastic debris.

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“…Besides, synthetic polymer degradability after disposal is a serious environmental concern ( Moore, 2008 ; Miller, 2013 ; Souzandeh et al, 2019 ). Synthetic polymers continue to release harmful VOCs even after disposal ( Lomonaco et al, 2020 ) and recycling ( Cabanes et al, 2020 ). Synthetic polymers also have lethal effects on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystem ( Singh et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%