Environmental Deterioration of Biodegradable, Oxo-biodegradable, Compostable, and Conventional Plastic Carrier Bags in the Sea, Soil, and Open-Air Over a 3-Year Period
dc.contributor.author | Napper, IE | |
dc.contributor.author | Thompson, Richard | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2019-06-15T11:30:37Z | |
dc.date.available | 2019-06-15T11:30:37Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2019-05-07 | |
dc.identifier.issn | 0013-936X | |
dc.identifier.issn | 1520-5851 | |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/14316 | |
dc.description.abstract |
There is clear evidence that discarded single-use carrier bags are accumulating in the environment. As a result, various plastic formulations have been developed which state they deteriorate faster and/or have fewer impacts on the environment because their persistence is shorter. This study examined biodegradable, oxo-biodegradable, compostable, and high-density polyethylene (i.e., a conventional plastic carrier bag) materials over a 3 year period. These materials were exposed in three natural environments; open-air, buried in soil, and submersed in seawater, as well as in controlled laboratory conditions. In the marine environment, the compostable bag completely disappeared within 3 months. However, the same compostable bag type was still present in the soil environment after 27 months but could no longer hold weight without tearing. After 9 months exposure in the open-air, all bag materials had disintegrated into fragments. Collectively, our results showed that none of the bags could be relied upon to show any substantial deterioration over a 3 year period in all of the environments. It is therefore not clear that the oxo-biodegradable or biodegradable formulations provide sufficiently advanced rates of deterioration to be advantageous in the context of reducing marine litter, compared to conventional bags. | |
dc.format.extent | 4775-4783 | |
dc.format.medium | Print-Electronic | |
dc.language | en | |
dc.language.iso | en | |
dc.publisher | American Chemical Society | |
dc.subject | Plastics | |
dc.subject | Polyethylene | |
dc.subject | Seawater | |
dc.subject | Soil | |
dc.title | Environmental Deterioration of Biodegradable, Oxo-biodegradable, Compostable, and Conventional Plastic Carrier Bags in the Sea, Soil, and Open-Air Over a 3-Year Period | |
dc.type | journal-article | |
dc.type | Journal Article | |
dc.type | Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't | |
plymouth.author-url | https://www.webofscience.com/api/gateway?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000467641800013&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=11bb513d99f797142bcfeffcc58ea008 | |
plymouth.issue | 9 | |
plymouth.volume | 53 | |
plymouth.publication-status | Published | |
plymouth.journal | Environmental Science and Technology | |
dc.identifier.doi | 10.1021/acs.est.8b06984 | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/Faculty of Science and Engineering | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/Faculty of Science and Engineering/School of Biological and Marine Sciences | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/REF 2021 Researchers by UoA | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/REF 2021 Researchers by UoA/UoA07 Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/Research Groups | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/Research Groups/Marine Institute | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/Users by role | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/Users by role/Academics | |
plymouth.organisational-group | /Plymouth/Users by role/Researchers in ResearchFish submission | |
dc.publisher.place | United States | |
dcterms.dateAccepted | 2019-04-03 | |
dc.rights.embargodate | 2020-4-27 | |
dc.identifier.eissn | 1520-5851 | |
dc.rights.embargoperiod | Not known | |
rioxxterms.versionofrecord | 10.1021/acs.est.8b06984 | |
rioxxterms.licenseref.uri | http://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved | |
rioxxterms.licenseref.startdate | 2019-05-07 | |
rioxxterms.type | Journal Article/Review |