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Risk for the release of an enormous amount of nanoplastics and microplastics from partially biodegradable polymer blends
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Researchers found that partially biodegradable polymer blends pose a significant risk of releasing non-biodegradable components as microplastics and nanoplastics into the environment during the biodegradation of the biodegradable fraction.
Non-biodegradable polymers are released as microplastics into the environments during the biodegradation of partially biodegradable polymer blends.
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Millions of microplastics released from a biodegradable polymer during biodegradation/enzymatic hydrolysis
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Researchers found that enzymatic biodegradation of a biodegradable plastic released millions of microplastic particles from just 0.1 grams of material, demonstrating that biodegradable plastics still pose a significant microplastic pollution risk during breakdown.
Microplastics Originating from Polymer Blends: An Emerging Threat?
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Researchers highlight an overlooked source of microplastic pollution: polymer blends, where a single gram of blended plastic can contain millions to billions of micrometer-sized particles of the dispersed phase. When the surrounding matrix material degrades, especially if it is biodegradable while the dispersed phase is not, enormous quantities of microplastics can be released. The study warns that polymer blends represent an emerging and potentially massive source of microplastic contamination during production, use, and disposal.
Aging of biodegradable blended plastic generates microplastics and attached bacterial communities in air and aqueous environments
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Researchers aged biodegradable plastic blends in both air and water, finding that fragmentation into microplastics was inevitable before complete degradation, and that the resulting particles attracted distinct bacterial communities compared to conventional plastics. The study raises concerns that biodegradable plastics may still pose environmental risks during the microplastic phase of their breakdown.
Evaluation of the degradation from micro to nanoplastics from biodegradable bags in marine conditions
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Researchers evaluated how biodegradable plastic bags degrade into micro- and nanoplastics under environmental conditions, comparing them to conventional plastics. The study found that even biodegradable materials generate persistent micro- and nanoplastic particles under real-world conditions.
Biodegradable microplastics (BMPs): a new cause for concern?
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This review examined whether biodegradable microplastics present new environmental hazards, finding that many biodegradable polymers degrade slowly under real environmental conditions and can release toxic additives, and that the assumption of biodegradability does not eliminate microplastic pollution risks unless composting conditions are actively managed.
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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.