Erosion as a possible mechanism for the decrease of size of plastic pieces floating in oceans

Marine Pollution Bulletin
Ana-Maria ResmerițăPatrick Navard

Abstract

A sea water wave tank fitted in an artificial UV light weathering chamber was built to study the behaviour of polypropylene (PP) injected pieces in close ocean-like conditions. In air, the same pieces sees a degradation in the bulk with a decrease of mechanical properties, a little change of crystal properties and nearly no change of surface chemistry. Weathering in the sea water wave tank shows only a surface changes, with no effect on crystals or mechanical properties with loss of small pieces of matter in the sub-micron range and a change of surface chemistry. This suggests an erosion dispersion mechanism. Such mechanism could explain why no particle smaller than about one millimeter is found when collecting plastic debris at sea: there are much smaller, eroded from plastic surfaces by a mechano-chemical process similar to the erosion mechanism found in the dispersion of agglomerate under flow.

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Citations

Jan 28, 2020·The Science of the Total Environment·Gabriella F SchirinziDamià Barceló
Jul 11, 2021·Marine Pollution Bulletin·Maria MasryPascal Wong-Wah-Chung
Nov 5, 2021·The Science of the Total Environment·Anthony L AndradyBimali Koongolla
Nov 23, 2021·The Science of the Total Environment·Maximilian P Born, Catrina Brüll

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