Chemicals Present in Plastic Waste

Luan Nguyen^*
*Correspondence: Luan Nguyen, Department of Agrochemistry and Biochemistry, University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain, Email:

Keywords

Polyhydroxyalkanoate • Methanotrophs • Methane

Introduction

Ocean pollution is widespread, getting worse and poorly controlled in most nations. Toxic metals, plastics, manufactured chemicals, petroleum, waste from cities and factories, pesticides, fertilizers, pharmaceutical chemicals, agricultural runoff and sewage make up the complex mixture. Over 80% of the material comes from land-based sources. Rivers, runoff, atmospheric deposition and direct discharges are the means by which it reaches the oceans. It frequently reaches its highest concentration along the coasts of low- and middle-income nations, often near the coasts. Harmful algal blooms (HABs) spread to previously unaffected regions as a result of the global spread of industrialized agriculture and the growing use of chemical fertilizers. Seas and marine organisms are tainted by chemical pollutants everywhere, from the high Arctic to the deepest oceans [1,2].

Discussion

For instance, the marine species have experienced issues such as ingestion, entanglement, debilitation and suffocation as a result of these marine debris. With the assistance of biological agents, plastic can be rapidly reduced to its basic components. Through aerobic and anaerobic processes, a variety of microorganisms have great potential to biologically convert certain plastic polymers into simpler products. Microbial biomass could be the final product of complete biodegradation if a biological agent uses the organic polymer as a nutritional substrate for energy and growth. Since synthesized enzymes with simple or multiple toxin systems involve a reduction in activation energy to weaken the chemical bonds in the polymer, it was recently discovered that various microalgae promote biodegradation of polymers and reduce the energy required for degradation.

As a result, the marine species' life quality has decreased, they have been unable to avoid predators as effectively, they have a diminished capacity to reproduce and they have died. Since microplastics have been found in air and food samples, concerns about their potential impact on human health are also growing. Since the use of plastic materials for everyday needs is unavoidable, researchers have been looking into ways to aid in plastic degradation and alternatives to conventional plastics because of the severe consequences. However, in addition to oil, these enhanced oil recovery (EOR) operations also produce a significant amount of water. The oil field produces between seven and ten times more water than oil, depending on the age and stage of the oil reserve. This water has a wide range of toxic components, including trace amounts of crude oil, heavy metals and various chemicals (used in EOR operations like HPAM). As a result, proper use and treatment are required for the vast quantities of HPAM-containing produced water that are produced worldwide.

There hasn't been a good way to quickly degrade these plastic wastes since the plastics industry started. The majority of plastics are slow to degrade due to their chemical structure, which makes them resistant to numerous natural processes of degradation. In addition, the low cost and durability of plastics led to a high production rate. The combination of these two characteristics has resulted in a significant amount of plastic pollution in the environment. Although the toxicity of HPAM is still unknown, the byproduct of its natural decomposition, acrylamide, poses a threat to human health and the environment. As a result, the primary obstacle lies in safely removing or degrading HPAM from the produced water prior to proper disposal. HPAM can be removed using a variety of chemical and thermal methods, but they are not very good for the environment and can be quite pricey. Biodegradation with the help of single or mixed microbes known as biofilms is touted as one of the various treatments that can be used to solve the problem without causing any negative side effects. In both laboratory-scale and field-scale studies, numerous researchers have investigated and reported the potential of such bioremediation technology with varying HPAM removal efficiency from oil field produced water. The current review is in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 6 for water security [3].

Waste packaging foam was used as a crosslinker due to its low surface energy in a co-Pickering emulsion system with silica and Span 80 to stabilize the emulsions. The discarded PS plastic can be dissolved in a styrene monomer and used to build a hydrophobic skeleton for the target material thanks to its low surface energy. As a result, the produced foam was able to separate oil spills and heavy oil from water due to its superhydrophobic and oleophilic properties. The control experiments on the amount of water revealed that the amount of water used to prepare the material had a significant impact on the foam's capacity to absorb oil. Additionally, the material's ability to be utilized as an effective adsorbent for oil spill cleanup was demonstrated by the foam's ability to be reused for at least ten cycles of oil adsorption and recovery.

The sorption and desorption dynamics of micro- and nanoscale plastic (MPs/NPs) polymers for emerging contaminants (e.g., endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) and certain heavy metals) are discussed in relation to the fate and cycle of environmental contaminants as well as the effects of weathering-driven Based on multiple kinetic and isotherm studies, the weathering processes, pathways and mechanisms that control the adsorption of specific environmental pollutants on the surface of MPs/NPs are evaluated in relation to the physicochemical changes. Additionally, we found hydroxyl peaks containing significant amounts of acetaldehyde, most likely derived from the PET monomer ethylene glycol.

Although it has been reported that yeast and some other eukaryotic microbial organisms contain small amounts of low-molecular-mass PHBs that act as polyphosphate complexes in membrane transport, PHB synthesis from eukaryotic cells has not been described in detail at the time of writing this review. In addition, it has been demonstrated that plant biomass as well as metabolites produced by plants can be utilized as raw materials for the production of PHB using eukaryotic microorganisms, thereby supporting the development of promising and economically feasible biotechnological processes. The majority of these processes, on the other hand, have only been studied in the laboratory. In order to increase knowledge in this particular area, additional research needs to be carried out soon [4].

Marine plastic pollution poses a growing threat to the environment. Although it is generally accepted that rivers transport the majority of marine plastics from land to the ocean, little information exists regarding riverine plastic transport. Riverine plastics have recently been characterized consistently across time and space using new techniques. In addition, we report brandnew data on riverine plastic transport's vertical and cross-sectional distribution. We highlight the severity of the emerging plastic pollution thread's impact on riverine ecosystems and present new insights into the origin and fate of riverine plastic transport. The rate of plastic biodegradation by fungal and bacterial communities as well as the mechanism of biodegradation are the primary topics of this review [5].

Conclusion

One type of "food," an edible material, is used to package another type of "food," a packaged product and organically integrates food with packaging through clever material design in edible packaging, a sustainable product and technology. Polysaccharides are a dependable source of edible packaging materials that also have antioxidant and antimicrobial properties and excellent renewable, biodegradable and biocompatible properties.

Acknowledgement

None.

Conflict of Interest

There are no conflicts of interest by author

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