Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan.
Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan; Research Center for Smart Sustainable Circular Economy, Tunghai University, Taichung 407, Taiwan; Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Chin-Yi University of Technology, Taichung 411, Taiwan.
J Hazard Mater. 2021 Sep 15;418:126381. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.126381. Epub 2021 Jun 11.
As plastics have been omnipresent in society ever since their introduction in 1907, global plastic production has ballooned in the 20th century or the Plasticene Era (Plastic Age). After their useful life span, they deliberately or accidentally, are disposed of in the environment. Influenced by different factors, plastics undergo fragmentation into microplastics (MPs) and present hazardous risks in all life forms including humans. Obliterating MPs from the environment has been a global challenge for the attainment of sustainable development goals (SDGs). This review aims to present MP degradation routes with a great focus on the thermodegradation and biodegradation routes as sustainable routes of MP degradation. These routes can achieve the reduction and obliteration of MPs in the environment, thus reducing their hazardous effects. Moreover, the thermodegradation of MPs can produce fuels that help solve the dilemma of energy security. Overall, continued research and development are still needed, however, these novel approaches and the increased awareness of the microplastics' hazards give us hope that we can achieve sustainable development in the near future.
自 1907 年问世以来，塑料在社会中无处不在，因此，全球塑料产量在 20 世纪（即塑料时代）呈爆炸式增长。在达到使用寿命后，它们会被故意或无意地丢弃在环境中。受不同因素的影响，塑料会碎裂成微塑料（MPs），并对包括人类在内的所有生命形式造成危险风险。为了实现可持续发展目标（SDGs），从环境中消除 MPs 一直是一个全球性的挑战。本综述旨在介绍 MPs 的降解途径，重点关注热降解和生物降解途径，因为它们是 MPs 降解的可持续途径。这些途径可以减少和消除环境中的 MPs，从而降低它们的危害性。此外， MPs 的热降解还可以产生燃料，有助于解决能源安全的困境。总的来说，仍需要持续的研究和开发，然而，这些新方法和对微塑料危害的认识提高，给我们带来了希望，即在不久的将来我们能够实现可持续发展。
