Kai Zhang, Amir Hossein Hamidian, Aleksandra Tubić, Yu Zhang, James K.H.

Fang,
Chenxi Wu, Paul K.S. Lam,
Understanding plastic degradation and microplastic formation in the environment: A
review,
Environmental Pollution,
Volume 274,
2021,
116554,
ISSN 0269-7491,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.116554.
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749121001329)
Abstract: Plastic waste are introduced into the environment inevitably and their
exposure in the environment causes deterioration in mechanical and physicochemical
properties and leads to the formation of plastic fragments, which are considered as
microplastics when their size is < 5 mm. In recent years, microplastic pollution
has been reported in all kinds of environments worldwide and is considered a
potential threat to the health of ecosystems and humans. However, knowledge on the
environmental degradation of plastics and the formation of microplastics is still
limited. In this review, potential hotspots for the accumulation of plastic waste
were identified, major mechanisms and characterization methods of plastic
degradation were summarized, and studies on the environmental degradation of
plastics were evaluated. Future research works should further identify the key
environmental parameters and properties of plastics affecting the degradation in
order to predict the fate of plastics in different environments and facilitate the
development of technologies for reducing plastic pollution. Formation and
degradation of microplastics, including nanoplastics, should receive more research
attention to assess their fate and ecological risks in the environment more
comprehensively.
Keywords: Plastics; Hotspots; Fate; Degradation mechanisms; Characterization