How soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle?
Approximately half of plastic waste ends up in landfills, where fragmentation leads to the leakage of microplastics, nanoplastics, and petrogenic carbon back into ecosystems. However, the timeframe for plastic re-entry into the geological carbon cycle remains unknown. Using landfill-derived field da...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2025-07-01
|
| Series: | Environmental Science and Ecotechnology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666498425000687 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850120317385572352 |
|---|---|
| author | Yicheng Yang Junjie Qiu Hua Zhang Pinjing He Fan Lü |
| author_facet | Yicheng Yang Junjie Qiu Hua Zhang Pinjing He Fan Lü |
| author_sort | Yicheng Yang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Approximately half of plastic waste ends up in landfills, where fragmentation leads to the leakage of microplastics, nanoplastics, and petrogenic carbon back into ecosystems. However, the timeframe for plastic re-entry into the geological carbon cycle remains unknown. Using landfill-derived field data, we developed a model predicting fragmentation of various polymers into macroplastics, microplastics, fine microplastics, and nanoplastics. We find total waste plastic concentrations range from 85 to 414 mg g−1, with microplastic, fine microplastic, and nanoplastic generation rates of 2–69, 0.5–36.8, and 0.04–1.9 mg per g of plastic, respectively. Plastic distribution depends more on landfill depth than disposal age. Polyethylene terephthalate fragments faster than polypropylene or polyethylene. Our model predicts peak microplastic and fine microplastic fractions within 157–382 and 412–2118 years, respectively, with approximately half of the plastic-derived carbon available for geological cycling in 80–208 years. This research helps clarify the environmental fate of pervasive plastic pollution. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2b02a193f76c4e338f610bcfe136829a |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2666-4984 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Science and Ecotechnology |
| spelling | doaj-art-2b02a193f76c4e338f610bcfe136829a2025-08-20T02:35:22ZengElsevierEnvironmental Science and Ecotechnology2666-49842025-07-012610059010.1016/j.ese.2025.100590How soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle?Yicheng Yang0Junjie Qiu1Hua Zhang2Pinjing He3Fan Lü4Institute of Waste Treatment & Reclamation, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, ChinaInstitute of Waste Treatment & Reclamation, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, ChinaInstitute of Waste Treatment & Reclamation, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, 200092, ChinaInstitute of Waste Treatment & Reclamation, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, 200092, China; Corresponding author. Institute of Waste Treatment & Reclamation, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China.Institute of Waste Treatment & Reclamation, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, 200092, China; Corresponding author. Institute of Waste Treatment & Reclamation, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, ChinaApproximately half of plastic waste ends up in landfills, where fragmentation leads to the leakage of microplastics, nanoplastics, and petrogenic carbon back into ecosystems. However, the timeframe for plastic re-entry into the geological carbon cycle remains unknown. Using landfill-derived field data, we developed a model predicting fragmentation of various polymers into macroplastics, microplastics, fine microplastics, and nanoplastics. We find total waste plastic concentrations range from 85 to 414 mg g−1, with microplastic, fine microplastic, and nanoplastic generation rates of 2–69, 0.5–36.8, and 0.04–1.9 mg per g of plastic, respectively. Plastic distribution depends more on landfill depth than disposal age. Polyethylene terephthalate fragments faster than polypropylene or polyethylene. Our model predicts peak microplastic and fine microplastic fractions within 157–382 and 412–2118 years, respectively, with approximately half of the plastic-derived carbon available for geological cycling in 80–208 years. This research helps clarify the environmental fate of pervasive plastic pollution.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666498425000687LandfillsMicroplasticsNanoplasticsPlastic carbonPlastic evolution |
| spellingShingle | Yicheng Yang Junjie Qiu Hua Zhang Pinjing He Fan Lü How soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle? Environmental Science and Ecotechnology Landfills Microplastics Nanoplastics Plastic carbon Plastic evolution |
| title | How soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle? |
| title_full | How soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle? |
| title_fullStr | How soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle? |
| title_full_unstemmed | How soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle? |
| title_short | How soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle? |
| title_sort | how soon will landfilled plastics integrate into the geological carbon cycle |
| topic | Landfills Microplastics Nanoplastics Plastic carbon Plastic evolution |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666498425000687 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT yichengyang howsoonwilllandfilledplasticsintegrateintothegeologicalcarboncycle AT junjieqiu howsoonwilllandfilledplasticsintegrateintothegeologicalcarboncycle AT huazhang howsoonwilllandfilledplasticsintegrateintothegeologicalcarboncycle AT pinjinghe howsoonwilllandfilledplasticsintegrateintothegeologicalcarboncycle AT fanlu howsoonwilllandfilledplasticsintegrateintothegeologicalcarboncycle |