Environmental Chemistry: An approach to help understand competitive and accelerated mineralization processes that drive plasticsÕ fate in terrestrial soils
Abstract
Plastic waste is ubiquitous in the environment where it may persist for decades or more. Recent estimates suggest that aquatic and terrestrial systems receive ~9 to 25 million metric tons each, on an annual basis, and some speculate the accumulation of plastics in the terrestrial environment may rival or already surpass the amounts found in aquatic counterparts. Bioplastics are a proposed solution to waste accumulation; the ÔnoveltyÕ of bioplastics is that they are produced from renewable feedstock materials as opposed to nonrenewable petroleum precursors and have a finite environmental lifetime because they are easily and rapidly mineralized to CO2 and H2O. The deterioration of plastics, timelines associated with their breakdown, and confirmation of their suitability to degrade Ôin placeÕ to harmless products in the heterogeneous soil environment remain at the frontier of our understanding. The research community is challenged by these phenomena and require an understanding of the geochemical conditions driving plastic degradation and a means to link plasticsÕ presence and degradation in soil to its microbial transformation (i.e., assimilation, biosynthesis, and overall mineralization). This proposal seeks to link soil geochemical conditions (i.e., pH, moisture, soil organic carbon) to the overall degradation of plastics and, in turn, plasticsÕ potential to influence the labile carbon pool normally assimilated and metabolized by soil microorganisms. Distinct, but complimentary, isotopic molecular pattern recognition and microbial profiling techniques will be used to accomplish the study and produce a deeper understanding of multistep and potentially kinetic driven processes that ultimately degrade or partially degrade plastics in soils where they accumulate. Understanding the competitive mineralization processes that exist between plastics and soil organic carbon, and the accelerated deterioration of bioplastics in the soil environment may be advantageous to society and the U.S. Army as they seek to mitigate waste accumulation and improve recycling practices.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Sep 28, 2022
- Source ID
- W911NF2210256
Entities
People
- Brian Giebel
Organizations
- Army Contracting Command
- Research Foundation of The City University of New York
- United States Army