Plastics are ubiquitous in our world, and given that plastic waste can take thousands of years to break down, there's more of it to be found on Earth every single day. Worse yet is the fact that the stuff doesn't easily decompose—it ...
Environment
Apr 9, 2024
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5
In recent years, there has been rising concern that tiny particles known as microplastics are showing up basically everywhere on Earth, from polar ice to soil, drinking water and food. Formed when plastics break down into ...
Environment
Jan 8, 2024
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558
Plastic litter is a growing problem around the world, and new research shows that the bottom of Lake Tahoe is no exception. In one of the first studies to utilize scuba divers to collect litter from a lakebed, 673 plastic ...
Environment
Jan 3, 2024
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36
Bio-based plastics such as polylactic acid (PLA) were invented to help solve the plastic waste crisis, but they often end up making waste management more challenging.
Polymers
Nov 17, 2023
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77
A collaborative research team lead by the University of Massachusetts Amherst has recently revealed that rotifers, a kind of microscopic zooplankton common in both fresh and ocean water around the world, are able to chew ...
Environment
Nov 9, 2023
2
325
Little of the mixed consumer plastics thrown away or placed in recycle bins actually ends up being recycled. Nearly 90% is buried in landfills or incinerated at commercial facilities that generate greenhouse gases and airborne ...
Polymers
Oct 22, 2023
2
493
The US government on Thursday announced plans to phase out single-use plastics on public lands, including the country's famous national parks, by 2032.
Environment
Sep 29, 2023
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0
Researchers have genetically engineered a marine microorganism to break down plastic in salt water. Specifically, the modified organism can break down polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a plastic used in everything from water ...
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 14, 2023
1
258
Chemists at CU Boulder have developed a new way to recycle a common type of plastic found in soda bottles and other packaging. The team's method relies on electricity and some nifty chemical reactions, and it's simple enough ...
Polymers
Jul 5, 2023
0
63
Discarded or drifting in the ocean, plastic debris can accumulate on the water's surface, forming floating islands of garbage. Although it's harder to spot, researchers suspect a significant amount also sinks. In a new study ...
Environment
May 8, 2023
0
78
