Quantification of fragmentation and aging of plastics in the environment

The subject of plastics in the environment as a polluting and potentially toxic material for all living beings is today a major national, European, and international issue. About ten years ago, two studies were the first to provide a synthesis of work on methods for identifying and quantifying plastics in the marine environment (Cole et al., 2011; Hidalgo-Ruz et al., 2012). These papers have listed major scientific problems that limit the identification and quantification of plastics, and this on all environmental compartments (hydrosphere, lithosphere, biosphere, atmosphere). A standardized method, rapid and limiting the handling of samples is needed to identify and quantify (micro-) plastics (fragmentation, aging), and this is today a major research focus.

The main scientific question of this PhD thesis can be summarized as follow: Is it possible to define a methodology to analyze a sample of sediment containing plastics, and making possible the quantification and qualification (fragmentation, aging) of the type of plastics? This thesis will continue the efforts already initiated on analytical aspects using the Rock-Eval® thermal method to quantify plastics in the environment (e.g., Romero-Sarmiento et al., 2022). The objectives of this project are therefore based on the development and adaptation of the current technology (Rock-Eval®) for the analysis of plastics in sediments and their aging. These objectives fully meet an environmental need for the determination of plastic pollutants and their evolution (degradation, recombination) in aquatic environments. This will include working, from synthetic samples, on issues related to the impact of plastic aging on the results of the analysis. An application on a complete real study case will allow the method to be compared to the “ground truth”, as well as to other analytical methods used to quantify plastics in the environment.

Keywords: Rock-Eval, plastic, fragmentation, environment

• Academic supervisor    PhD, HdR, ROMERO-SARMIENTO Maria, IFP Energies nouvelles, ORCID 0000-0001-6577-7388
• Doctoral School    Sorbonne Université Ecole Doctorale GRNE 398
• IFPEN supervisor    PhD, HdR, ROMERO-SARMIENTO Maria, IFP Energies nouvelles, maria-fernanda.romero-sarmiento@ifpen.fr ORCID 0000-0001-6577-7388
• PhD location    IFP Energies nouvelles, Rueil-Malmaison, France
• Duration and start date    3 years, starting in fourth quarter 2023
• Employer    IFP Energies nouvelles, Rueil-Malmaison, France
• Academic requirements    University master’s degree in Geochemistry/Chemistry
• Language requirements    Fluency in French or English, willingness to learn French