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Deterioration of single-use biodegradable plastics in high-humidity air and freshwaters over one year: Significant disparities in surface physicochemical characteristics and degradation rates
Journal of Hazardous Materials2023
16 citations
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Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count.
Score: 45
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0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Li Cai,
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Linlin He,
Linlin He,
Lingling Hu,
Linlin He,
Linlin He,
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Lingling Hu,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Li Cai,
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Yumeng Wang,
Yumeng Wang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Daoyong Zhang,
Gang Wu,
Gang Wu,
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Lingling Hu,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Li Cai,
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Li Cai,
Daoyong Zhang,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Li Cai,
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Lingling Hu,
Lingling Hu,
Daoyong Zhang,
Daoyong Zhang,
Yu‐Zhong Wang,
Yu‐Zhong Wang,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Li Cai,
Li Cai,
Li Cai,
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Xiangliang Pan
Summary
This study evaluated the degradation of single-use biodegradable plastics over one year in both high-humidity air and freshwater environments, finding significant disparities in surface chemistry changes and degradation rates between the two conditions. The results suggest biodegradable plastics degrade far more slowly in open-air and freshwater than expected.
More single-use plastics are accumulating in the environment, and likewise biodegradable plastics (BPs), which are being vigorously promoted, cannot escape the fate. Currently, studies on the actual degradation of BPs in open-air and freshwaters are underrepresented despite they are potentially headmost leakage and contamination sites for disposable BPs. Herein, we compared the degradation behavior of six BP materials and non-degradable polypropylene (PP) plastics over a 1-year in situ suspension in the high-humidity air, a eutrophic river, and an oligotrophic lake. Moreover, a 3-months laboratory incubation was performed to detect the release of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from BPs. In both air and freshwaters, poly(p-dioxanone) (PPDO) degraded significantly while PP and polylactic acid (PLA) showed no signs of degradation. The average degradation rates of three poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT)-based films varied: 100% in river, 55% in lake, and 10% in air. In addition to PLA, surface chemical groups, hydrophilicity, and thermal stability of BPs changed, and microplastics were found on their surfaces. Correspondingly, BPs with faster degradation rates released relatively higher amounts of DOC. Environmental microbial and chemical characteristics may contribute to differences in BP degradation besides polymer specificity. Altogether, our results indicate the need for appropriate monitoring of BPs.