Status and Enhancement Techniques of Plastic Waste Degradation in the Environment: A Review

Yulong Niu, Fengying Pan, Kailiang Shen, Xingfeng Yang, Shiyu Niu, Xinyan Xu, Hongyi Zhou, Qiang Fu and Xiaowei Li ()
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Yulong Niu: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Organic Compound Pollution Control Engineering, Ministry of Education, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Fengying Pan: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Organic Compound Pollution Control Engineering, Ministry of Education, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Kailiang Shen: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Organic Compound Pollution Control Engineering, Ministry of Education, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Xingfeng Yang: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Organic Compound Pollution Control Engineering, Ministry of Education, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Shiyu Niu: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Organic Compound Pollution Control Engineering, Ministry of Education, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Xinyan Xu: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Organic Compound Pollution Control Engineering, Ministry of Education, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Hongyi Zhou: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Organic Compound Pollution Control Engineering, Ministry of Education, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Qiang Fu: Centre for Technology in Water and Wastewater, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia
Xiaowei Li: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Organic Compound Pollution Control Engineering, Ministry of Education, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 21, 1-24

Abstract: Plastic waste has been gradually accumulating in the environment due to rapid population growth and increasing consumer demand, posing threats to both the environment and human health. In this overview, we provide a comprehensive understanding of the degradation of plastics in real environments, such as soil, aquatic environment, landfill, and compost. Both conventional and biodegradable plastics exhibit limited degradation in real environments, except for biodegradable plastics during industrial composting with high thermophilic temperatures. Meanwhile, we also review techniques for enhanced degradation of plastics such as physical technologies (e.g., photocatalysis, mechanical degradation, and pyrolysis), chemical technologies (e.g., hydrolysis, alcoholysis, ammonia, strong oxidation, and supercritical fluids), and biotechnologies (e.g., microorganisms, microfauna, and microalgae). The future research directions for the enhancement of plastic degradation are also discussed, such as the establishment of equivalency standards, adoption of internal control techniques, the control of precise recycling of plastic products, and the ecotoxicology of their degradation products. Therefore, this review comprehensively summarizes the state of plastic degradation in real environments and proposes methods to improve plastic degradation, providing a theoretical basis for the future control and disposal of plastics.

Keywords: conventional plastics; biodegradable plastics; real environment; physical technology; chemical technology; biological technology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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