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Policies and Perspectives on Regulating Microplastic Fibre Pollution
Published in Judith S. Weis, Francesca De Falco, Mariacristina Cocca, Polluting Textiles, 2022
From the beginning of the 2000s a number of countries have taken legislative measures to curb plastic pollution, which started with the banning and levying of plastic bags as one of the most visible forms of pollution (UNEP, 2020). The United States was the first country to address MP pollution in its Microbead-Free Water Act in 2015, by banning solid MPs in certain wash-off cosmetic products and more countries followed. Other countries, such as France, Italy, New Zealand, Korea, Taiwan and the UK followed with similar laws. While these measures do not address MPFs of textiles, the adoption of these laws has raised awareness among policymakers on the issue of MP pollution in general.
The Essentials of Polymer Chemistry
Published in Armen S. Casparian, Gergely Sirokman, Ann O. Omollo, Rapid Review of Chemistry for the Life Sciences and Engineering, 2021
Armen S. Casparian, Gergely Sirokman, Ann O. Omollo
Resembling a patchwork quilt, this was probably the origin and initial recognition of the microplastics pollution problem. Most microplastics come from plastic pollution that gets broken down in the ocean and then ingested by marine animals and organisms. Particles are usually identified by manually separating them from animal tissue, suspending the particles in a solvent, and then analyzing them using spectroscopic techniques such as infrared or Raman spectroscopy. Both particle count and particle mass are important to measure and are determined by different analytical techniques. Microplastics are defined as plastic fragments whose size is between 1 micron and 5 mm. Nanoplastics are even smaller particles, less than 100 nm in size. A human hair has an average diameter in the range of 25–50 microns (1 micron = 1 μm = 1000 nm).
The Right Stuff
Published in Sharon Ann Holgate, Understanding Solid State Physics, 2021
As we use up more and more of the world’s natural resources, and as the amount of waste we dispose of increases—worldwide 2.01 billion tonnes of waste was thrown away in 2013, 242 million tonnes of which was plastic waste—the need for recycling becomes ever greater. According to 2018 UN figures, 80% of plastic ends up in the ocean at the end of its working life, and by 2050, the world’s oceans will contain more plastic than fish. Their statistics also reveal in 2017 only 9% of plastic waste was recycled. Single-use plastics, such as food and beverage packaging, drinking straws, and shopping bags, are some of the worst culprits when it comes to plastic pollution. This has led to governments and companies alike moving away from these plastics in many different scenarios, such as replacing plastic straws with paper ones and selling food that goes directly into the shopper’s own container rather than being supplied in a single-use plastic wrapping. Increasing amounts of products are also being made from waste—including discarded plastics.
Non-emission hydrothermal low-temperature synthesis of carbon nanomaterials from poly (ethylene terephthalate) plastic waste for excellent supercapacitor applications
Published in Green Chemistry Letters and Reviews, 2023
Moses Kigozi, Gabriel N. Kasozi, Sachin Balaso Mohite, Sizwe Zamisa, Rajshekhar Karpoormath, John Baptist Kirabira, Emmanuel Tebandeke
The consumption and production of plastic products are still rising with industrialization. For example, in 2015, factories produced approximately 6.5 billion metric tons (MT) of plastic (10). It was estimated that 9% of 6.5 billion MT was recycled, 12% incinerated, and 79% littered and discarded in a different environment, including landfills (4, 10). It is estimated that approximately 12 billion metric tons of plastic waste will be dumped in landfills and water bodies by 2050 if recycling is not improved (11). This is because the global use of plastic materials is in high demand, which may cause a worldwide plastic waste crisis (10). Plastic waste can be recycled into secondary raw materials used to produce the same product. Using modern methods, plastic waste can also be upcycled into tertiary materials that can be used to manufacture more advanced products than the previous ones (12). Once introduced into the environment, plastics can disintegrate to form microplastics, another growing plastic pollution problem. Microplastics are potentially high-risk emerging pollutants in both soil and aquatic environments resulting from the disintegration of plastic waste by different conditions. The degradation of plastic waste mainly occurs through some combination of photochemical, thermal, mechanical, and even biological processes (8). Studies show that microplastics are finding their way into the atmosphere, contaminating the air we breathe and several water sources (13).
The occurrence and degradation of aquatic plastic litter based on polymer physicochemical properties: A review
Published in Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 2018
Tom Bond, Veronica Ferrandiz-Mas, Mónica Felipe-Sotelo, Erik van Sebille
Given the abundance and geographical spread of aquatic plastic litter, combined with rising levels of plastics production, there is unlikely to be one single solution to the hazards they pose. Instead, multiple interventions should be targeted, including raising public awareness of littering, boosting the circular economy for plastic products, increased taxes on certain plastics, developing alternatives to plastic products, improving solid waste management and removing plastic pollution in bottlenecks where high concentrations occur, for example, washing machines, sewage works and coastlines (van Sebille et al., 2016). Innovative and sustainable plastic formulations also have a role to play. However, direct comparison with established plastics under representative conditions is required to prove the former do actually fragment more rapidly and into more benign products than the latter.
Reusing plastic waste in the production of bricks and paving blocks: a review
Published in European Journal of Environmental and Civil Engineering, 2022
Turkeswari Uvarajan, Paran Gani, Ng Chuck Chuan, Nur Hanis Zulkernain
Based on the particle size (PW) can be divided into two (a) microplastic which is less than 5 mm in diameter and (b) macroplastic which are more than 20 mm in diameter. Various studies have reported on the inconsistent size characterisation of microplastic which prevents the direct comparison to evaluate the abundance, distribution and composition of microplastic in a various environment (Filella, 2015; Hidalgo-Ruz et al., 2012). Microplastics is identified as one of the emerging threats of plastic pollution in aquatic and marine environments (Alomar et al., 2016; Cincinelli et al., 2017; Hurley et al., 2018; Woodall et al., 2014).