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Biodegradation of plastic wastes under semi-aerobic condition with active methane oxidation activities and nutrient supply
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Researchers tested biodegradation of plastic wastes under semi-aerobic landfill conditions, finding that polymer type and landfill conditions strongly influenced degradation rates and the generation of microplastic fragments. The study contributes to understanding how managed disposal sites affect long-term plastic persistence.
Elimination of plastic waste deposition in landfills is essential to avoid secondary pollution such as microplastics. Under appropriate environments, methanotrophs which proceed through methane oxidation reaction are capable of degrading plastics via their co-metabolisms. Nevertheless, nutrient conditions in landfills to promote methane oxidation and plastic degradation are still unclear. Therefore, the biodegradation of plastic wastes under semi-aerobic conditions with methane oxidation activities and nutrient additions was examined in this study. Various types of plastics (HDPE, LDPE, oxo-degradable plastics) were exposed to methane and air under semi-aerobic conditions in lysimeters where methanotrophic activities were promoted. Nitrate and phosphate and their combination were introduced into waste mixtures to determine their effect on plastic biodegradation. Changes in gas compositions, plastic weight losses, by-products, and microbial consortium were studied. Phosphate supplement resulted in higher methanotrophic population, particularly that of type I (Methylococcus sp., Methylocaldum sp., Methylovorus sp., Methylomonas sp., and Methylobacter sp.) and yielded highest biodegradation for oxo-degradable (15-20%) followed by HDPE (15-19%), and LDPE (4–7%). The plastic degradation was found well correlated to methane oxidation rate. Oppositely, nitrate supplements reduced MOR due to their competition with oxygen for microbial reactions. Semi-aerobic condition with a phosphate supplement is found effective in promoting plastic degradation in landfills.
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Researchers examined how landfill age affects waste plastic degradation, finding that older landfills contained smaller, more fragmented microplastics with increased surface oxidation and crystallinity changes, revealing the progressive breakdown pathway of plastics in landfill environments.
The evolution and fate of waste plastics in landfills subject to physical and biochemical processes - implications for microplastics
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This review examines how plastic waste in landfills is physically and biochemically transformed over time, with a focus on the conditions that generate microplastics from buried macroplastics. The authors explore implications for microplastic leaching and environmental contamination from landfill sites.
Microplastics: Degradation properties of polymers in the environment
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This study examined the degradation pathways and rates of various plastic polymers in environmental settings, addressing the gap between labeled biodegradability and actual environmental persistence. Understanding how different plastics fragment and degrade is essential for predicting their long-term fate as microplastics in soil and aquatic environments.
Degradation of microplastics and the plastisphere bacteria in the acidogenic phase of simulated municipal solid waste landfilling
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Researchers simulated conditions inside a municipal solid waste landfill and found that different microplastic types (PE, PS, and PLA) aged and degraded at very different rates during the acidogenic leachate phase, with distinct microbial communities forming on each plastic type. This matters because landfills are both sources and sinks for microplastics, and understanding how plastics degrade there helps predict what eventually leaches into groundwater and surrounding soil.
Microplastic Generation and Persistence of Biodegradable Plastics under Anaerobic Conditions
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Scientists tested how well "biodegradable" plastics actually break down in oxygen-free environments like landfills and found that many don't degrade as expected. Instead, several types of these supposedly eco-friendly plastics break apart into tiny plastic particles called microplastics that stick around for a long time. This matters because these microplastics can end up in our food and water, and we're still learning about their potential health effects.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.