Photodegradation of microplastics mediated by different types of soil: The effect of soil components

Abstract

Microplastics (MPs) have attracted considerable attention due to its worldwide distribution, environmental persistence, and ecological risks. In this work, the photodegradation of MPs mediated by five different types of soils were investigated. The results showed: after 20 d of xenon lamp irradiation, significant degradation of MP was observed on Harbin (S1), Huainan (S2), Jiangxi (S3), Shaanxi (S4) and Hainan (S5). The order of photodegradation rate of MP was S2 > S5 > S4 > S1 > S3. The components of the soil have some correlations with MPs photodegradation. The photodegradation of MP mediated by soil components (specifically, the clay, the iron oxides and MnO₂) displayed positive effect, while the photodegradation of MPs mediated by organic carbon showed inhibition trend. It is worth noting that electrostatic interaction may be the dominant factor affecting the interaction between MPs photodegradation rate and different soils surfaces. This study is helpful to deepen the understanding of the photochemical behavior of MP in soil, and is of great significance to evaluate the environmental fate and mechanism mediated by MP in soil.

Keywords: Microplastics; Photodegradation; Soil; Soil physicochemical properties.