Microplastics and Nanoplastics in the Environment

The term “plastic” is derived from the ancient Greek word plastikos, which refers to something that is appropriate for molding, and the Latin term plasticus, which means molding or shaping. The advent of plastics has led to fundamental transformation in the quality of human life and has facilitated unprecedented technological advancements. Because of its use in diverse sectors such as construction, packaging, transportation, healthcare and electronics, the development of this versatile and ubiquitous class of materials is widely perceived as one of the greatest technological achievements of the 21st century. Plastics are composed of large chain-like macromolecules which further consist of many recurring smaller molecules connected in a sequence. A substance with this kind of molecular arrangement is known as a “polymer.” Every individual molecule in a polymer chain is a single unit and is known as a “monomer.” Thus, monomers are small molecules that possess the ability to bond together to form long chains. A vast majority of polymers in today's world are synthetic plastics. However, many natural polymers such as deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) also exist. Therefore, it is important to note that although all plastics are polymers, not all polymers are plastics [1].