2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
The study of nanoplastic transformation in the aquatic environment and their transformations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
| Project/Area Number |
19K20435
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Review Section |
Basic Section 63010:Environmental dynamic analysis-related
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| Research Institution | Shimane University |
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Principal Investigator |
Nagato Gou 島根大学, 学術研究院環境システム科学系, 助教 (50793832)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2019-04-01 – 2023-03-31
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| Keywords | Microplastics / Nanoplastics / Raman spectroscopy / FTIR / PAHs / Environmental pollution / polymer crystallinity / carbonyl index |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
The focus of the study was on how plastics are changed in the environment. In both the atmospheric and marine environment, plastic degradation resulted in a greater degree of oxidation and crystallization of plastic surfaces. The influence of organic matter coronas on nanoplastics and microplastics was investigated in laboratory studies. Using yeast as a model organism, it was found that organic matter prevented the adherence of nanoplastics to the cell wall, likely because of the destabilization of the nanoplastic colloid. However, organic matter did not alleviate the toxicity of microplastics to Daphnia. Analyses of biofilms indicate that the microbes that grow on plastic surfaces differ from the microbes in the surrounding water. This may affect the extent to which other organic contaminants are transformed. For example, it was found that the oxidation of PAHs into more harmful congeners was correlated with microbial activity in the aquatic environment.
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| Free Research Field |
Environmental pollution
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
Like many contaminants, plastics are likely more harmful to organisms after they have been transformed in the environment. This research explored this transformation by investigating various types of change, from polymer organization to microbial community structure on plastic surfaces.
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