Resource or waste? A perspective of plastics degradation in soil with a focus on end-of-life options

Scalenghe, Riccardo

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2018.e00941

Cited by 112 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 189 publications

(229 reference statements)

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“…However, their risk also depends on the content of chemical additives [5,229]. Polyvinylchloride, polystyrene, polycarbonate, polyethylene, polyester, and polyurethane can contain and release toxic carcinogenic monomers, harmful for humans, rodents, and invertebrates [230,231]. As already mentioned, the high surface reactivity makes both MPs and NPs vectors of environmental toxic contaminants, whereas only MPs can be vectors of potential pathogens [28].…”

Section: Socio-economic Impacts Of Mps and Nps Soil Pollutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Pollution from Micro- and Nanoplastic Debris: A Hidden and Unknown Biohazard

et al. 2020

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The fate, properties and determination of microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) in soil are poorly known. In fact, most of the 300 million tons of plastics produced each year ends up in the environment and the soil acts as a log-term sink for these plastic debris. Therefore, the aim of this review is to discuss MP and NP pollution in soil as well as highlighting the knowledge gaps that are mainly related to the complexity of the soil ecosystem. The fate of MPs and NPs in soil is strongly determined by physical properties of plastics, whereas negligible effect is exerted by their chemical structures. The degradative processes of plastic, termed ageing, besides generating micro-and nano-size debris, can induce marked changes in their chemical and physical properties with relevant effects on their reactivity. Further, these processes could cause the release of toxic oligomeric and monomeric constituents from plastics, as well as toxic additives, which may enter in the food chain, representing a possible hazard to human health and potentially affecting the fauna and flora in the environment. In relation to their persistence in soil, the list of soil-inhabiting, plastic-eating bacteria, fungi and insect is increasing daily. One of the main ecological functions attributable to MPs is related to their function as vectors for microorganisms through the soil. However, the main ecological effect of NPs (limited to the fraction size < than 50 nm) is their capacity to pass through the membrane of both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. Soil biota, particularly earthworms and collembola, can be both MPs and NPs carriers through soil profile. The use of molecular techniques, especially omics approaches, can gain insights into the effects of MPs and NPs on composition and activity of microbial communities inhabiting the soil and into those living on MPs surface and in the gut of the soil plastic-ingesting fauna.

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Section: Socio-economic Impacts Of Mps and Nps Soil Pollutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Pollution from Micro- and Nanoplastic Debris: A Hidden and Unknown Biohazard

et al. 2020

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“…Thermoplastic polymers, some of which constitute the majority of the commonly known plastics, are extremely useful materials endowed with properties that make them ideal for applications such as insulation and packaging [1,2]. They are durable, water-proof and versatile materials that have become almost essential in our lives.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microbial Genes for a Circular and Sustainable Bio-PET Economy

Salvador

Abdulmutalib

González

et al. 2019

Genes

111

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Plastics have become an important environmental concern due to their durability and resistance to degradation. Out of all plastic materials, polyesters such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are amenable to biological degradation due to the action of microbial polyester hydrolases. The hydrolysis products obtained from PET can thereby be used for the synthesis of novel PET as well as become a potential carbon source for microorganisms. In addition, microorganisms and biomass can be used for the synthesis of the constituent monomers of PET from renewable sources. The combination of both biodegradation and biosynthesis would enable a completely circular bio-PET economy beyond the conventional recycling processes. Circular strategies like this could contribute to significantly decreasing the environmental impact of our dependence on this polymer. Here we review the efforts made towards turning PET into a viable feedstock for microbial transformations. We highlight current bottlenecks in degradation of the polymer and metabolism of the monomers, and we showcase fully biological or semisynthetic processes leading to the synthesis of PET from sustainable substrates.

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“…Other problem is still remaining the universal penetration of a microplastics. It had been revealed in water (Cozar et al, 2014;Eriksen et al, 2014), in a mountain soil of Switzerland where the particles have been likely transformed by the wind, in Arctic ice (Scalenghe, 2018), in a sea fauna varying from fish till zooplankton (Auta et al, 2017) and even in a food (Toussaint et al, 2019;Kutralam-Muniasamy et al, 2020). So, in our research we have been concentrated on the spread of the plastic particle in an ocean water.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%