title: The degradation potential of PET bottles in the marine environment: An ATR-FTIR based approach.
abstract: The dominance and persistence of plastic debris in the marine environment are well documented. No information exists in respect to their lifespan in the marine environment. Nevertheless, the degradation potential of plastic litter items remains a critical issue for marine litter research. In the present study, polyethylene terephthalate bottles (PETs) collected from the submarine environment were characterized using ATR-FTIR in respect to their degradation potential attributed to environmental conditions. A temporal indication was used as indicative to the years of presence of the PETs in the environment as debris. PETs seem to remain robust for approximately fifteen years. Afterwards, a significant decrease of the native functional groups was recorded; some even disappear; or new-not typical for PETs-are created. At a later stage, using the PET time series collected from the Saronikos Gulf (Aegean Sea-E. Mediterranean), it was possible to date bottles that were collected from the bottom of the Ionian Sea (W. Greece). It is the first time that such a study has been conducted with samples that were actually degraded in the marine environment.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Marine Geology and Physical Oceanography, Department of Geology, University of Patras, 26500 Patras, Greece.|Institute of Oceanography, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, 19013 Anavyssos, Greece.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ioakeimidis
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Patras, 26500 Patras, Greece.
authors.forename: K N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Fotopoulou
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Patras, 26500 Patras, Greece.
authors.forename: H K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Karapanagioti
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Marine Geology and Physical Oceanography, Department of Geology, University of Patras, 26500 Patras, Greece.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Geraga
authors.affiliation: Institute of Oceanography, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, 19013 Anavyssos, Greece.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zeri
authors.affiliation: Institute of Oceanography, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, 19013 Anavyssos, Greece.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Papathanassiou
authors.affiliation: Departement Océanographie et Dynamique des Ecosystemes, Institut français de recherche pour l'exploitation de la mer (Ifremer), Bastia, Corsica, France.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Galgani
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Marine Geology and Physical Oceanography, Department of Geology, University of Patras, 26500 Patras, Greece.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Papatheodorou
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D008386:Marine Biology; D011093:Polyethylene Terephthalates; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
chemical_list: D011093:Polyethylene Terephthalates