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Article ? AI-assigned paper type based on the abstract. Classification may not be perfect — flag errors using the feedback button. Tier 2 ? Original research — experimental, observational, or case-control study. Direct primary evidence. Environmental Sources Remediation Sign in to save

Introduction, Past and Present Scenarios of Plastic Degradation

Materials research foundations 2021 2 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 35 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Nityanand Pandey

Summary

This review traces the history and current state of plastic degradation research, covering how plastics break down in the environment and what technologies exist to accelerate or improve degradation. The persistence of plastic in the environment is what drives the ongoing accumulation of microplastics globally.

The fascinating properties of plastic make its use widely possible in every field for the ease of human life. On the other hand, these properties make plastic non-biodegradable in nature. Hence the increasing accumulation of plastic in the environment is the arising concern for environmentalists and human society. This growing concern has motivated researchers and technologist to promote research activity for finding new degradation methods for plastics, synthesis of new plastic with biodegradable nature or find alternatives to plastics. Considering these facts, this book chapter briefly discusses the management of post-consumer plastic products and all the possible methods for plastic degradation such as photo and thermo-oxidative, catalytic, mechano-chemical and chemical along with the factors affecting these degradation methods.

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