Microplastics release from victuals packaging materials during daily usage
Qing‐Fang Guan,
Huai‐Bin Yang,
Yu‐Xiang Zhao,
Zi‐Meng Han,
Zhang‐Chi Ling,
Kun‐Peng Yang,
Chong‐Han Yin,
Shu‐Hong Yu
Affiliations
Qing‐Fang Guan
Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, Department of Chemistry Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei China
Huai‐Bin Yang
Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, Department of Chemistry Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei China
Yu‐Xiang Zhao
Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, Department of Chemistry Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei China
Zi‐Meng Han
Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, Department of Chemistry Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei China
Zhang‐Chi Ling
Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, Department of Chemistry Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei China
Kun‐Peng Yang
Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, Department of Chemistry Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei China
Chong‐Han Yin
Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, Department of Chemistry Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei China
Shu‐Hong Yu
Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, Department of Chemistry Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei China
Abstract Plastic packaging materials are widely used because of their advantages of light weight, low cost, and convenience, especially as victuals packaging materials. Approximately 146 million metric tons of plastics were used for packaging in 2015, but most of these plastics had already been discarded and followed by serious white pollution. What's worse, the victuals packaging materials, especially polystyrene (PS) foam containers, can release microplastics (MPs) during daily usage. Through the combination of various appropriate chemical (eg, spectroscopy) and physical (eg, microscopy) characterization and analysis, the existence of MPs is proved and MPs can be intuitively observed. Although the impacts of MPs on ecosystems and human health are still under discussion, existing studies have shown that MPs can be integrated into habitats through soil transportation, affecting the health of various terrestrial invertebrates. Faced with this shocking reality, reducing the use of PS foam containers at high temperatures and developing healthy materials to substitute these plastics are promising solutions.
