Aging assessment of microplastics (LDPE, PET and uPVC) under urban environment stressors

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2021

Authors

Miranda, MN (Author) FEUP; Sampaio, M.J. (Author) FEUP; Tavares, PB (Author) Other; Silva, Adrian (Author) FEUP; Manuel Fernando R Pereira (Author) FEUP

Journal

Title: Science of the Total Environment

Vol. 796

ISSN: 0048-9697

Publisher: Elsevier

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 0 Citations

Scopus - 2 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00V-EFJ

DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148914

Abstract (EN): The changes in the chemical structure, surface morphology and crystallinity are reported for three different polymers (LDPE, PET and uPVC) in microplastic form, after being artificially exposed to different aging agents that can affect microplastics in urban environments: ozone, UV-C, and solar radiation. In parallel to the laboratory experiments, the microplastics were exposed to real weathering conditions for three-months in a building rooftop located in the city of Porto (Portugal). By analysing the (virgin and aged) microplastic samples periodically through ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and estimating the Carbonyl Index, it was possible to sketch the aging degree evolution through time and identify the most aggressive agents for each polymer regarding the changes in their chemical structure. SEM and XRD measurements allowed to complement the ATR-FTIR results, giving a more complete picture of the effects of each treatment on each polymer and suggesting that ATR-FTIR measurements are not suffi-cient to correctly evaluate the aging degree of microplastics. The changes observed in the microplastic particles studied support the theory that microplastics in the environment undergo aging and change their characteristics through time, potentially affecting their behavior and intensifying their impacts.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 14