Plastic Life Cycle Research Articles

Toward the Global Plastic Treaty: A Review of the Vietnamese Regulatory Framework on Plastics

Countries around the world are negotiating a ground-breaking legally binding instrument by 2024 that will address the problem of worldwide plastic pollution. Vietnam is actively advocating for that global plastic treaty. This article discusses the comprehensive approach of addressing the full life cycle of plastics envisioned in the future treaty and analyses the current Vietnamese framework regulating plastics based on such a future treaty approach. Vietnamese regulations are examined to see whether they are sufficient and effective to support the implementation of the future plastic treaty in preventing plastic waste pollution across the entire plastic value chain. Based on the review, recommendations are made to further improve the relevant Vietnam’s regulatory framework.

A multidisciplinary perspective on the role of plastic pollution in the triple planetary crisis

In this perspective paper, we discuss the negative impacts of plastics and associated chemicals on the triple planetary crisis of environmental pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss from a multidisciplinary perspective. Plastics are part of the pollution crisis, threatening ecosystems and human health. They also impact climate change and accelerate biodiversity loss; in this, they aggravate the triple planetary crisis. We analyze the scientific state-of-the-art to identify critical knowledge gaps regarding the life cycle, release, fate, exposure, hazard and governance of plastics and associated chemicals, as well as links to climate change and biodiversity loss. Based on the outcome, we derive key research needs for a comprehensive hazard assessment of plastics and associated chemicals, amongst others, to address the largely missing regulation of plastic additives and in-use plastics. We offer a holistic perspective bridging disciplinary expertise from natural and social sciences to achieve effective plastic governance and risk management of plastics and associated chemicals that protect the Earth, its ecosystems and human health from the plastics crisis.

Determinants of environmental changes in human-modified ecosystems: Effects of plastics on moisture gradients, nutrients, and clay properties

Plastic pollution poses a significant threat to ecosystem health worldwide. This study examines the determinants of environmental changes in human-modified ecosystems through a quantitative-qualitative system dynamics modeling approach: field experiments conducted on a 310 m2 unsaturated clay-rich bed and a 2.5 m2 clay-rich shore of a plastic-impacted pond in Shenzhen, China, and a 1.17 ha plastic-impacted clay pit in Musanze, Rwanda; laboratory experiments involving Modified Proctor (MP) and California Bearing Ratio (CBR) tests on natural clay reinforced with polyethylene terephthalate (PET) microplastics, with diameters ranging from 0.25 to 5 mm and at concentrations of 1.25 %, 2.5 %, 3.75 %, 5 %, and 10 % by weight of clay; and plastic dynamic flows analyzed by modeling the life cycle of PET. Field experiments showed that mulch type and thickness were critical factors influencing crack distribution in a plastic-impacted pond bed. Specifically, cracks were dominant in areas with pronounced desiccation and lacking filamentous green algae and PET-dominated plastic waste. Along the 2.5 m moisture gradient in a plastic-impacted pond bed, temperature and moisture significantly influenced nutrients, particularly in pronounced desiccation zones. Laboratory experiments showed that microplastics altered the structural properties of natural clay, decreasing moisture content while increasing dry density and load-bearing capacity. The plastic life cycle underscored the roles of industrial and consumer practices, environmental conditions, and waste management and recycling inefficiencies in driving environmental changes in human-modified ecosystems. The findings underscore the need for effective plastic waste management and recycling to mitigate the ecological impacts of plastic pollution in ecosystems.

Additive inclusion in plastic life cycle assessments, part II: Review of additive inventory data trends and availability

AbstractPlastic additives are as essential as polymers to the production and performance of plastic materials. Additive content can vary in composition and functionality depending on the product, producer, application, and production method. Such variation may be a barrier to achieving high‐quality recycling and planning for plastic circular economy futures. Yet, as found in Part I, although there is increasing awareness of the importance of additives in plastics, they are often poorly disclosed or only briefly discussed in life cycle assessments (LCAs). In part II, we focus on the inclusion of additives in plastic processes in the database most used in plastic LCAs to date (Ecoinvent) and find that additives have historically been omitted from plastic granulate data and in production processes in the evaluated database. Thus, many practitioners will need to separately include additives in their models of plastic life cycles. To support practitioners in this endeavor, we then assess the availability of the 13,587 additives identified in the recent UN Chemicals in Plastics Report across the three major LCI databases (CarbonMinds, Ecoinvent, and LCA for Experts [GaBi]). We find that databases currently cover only 1,209 of these additives. Moreover, we assert that transparency regarding additive inclusion in plastics datasets, availability of additive datasets, and additive data completeness are major barriers to additive inclusion in plastic LCAs. Thus, we recommend focusing on the development of additive datasets, and we provide a tool for the identification of additive dataset availability and data gaps to improve the quality of plastic LCAs.

Leveraging integrative toxicogenomic approach towards development of stressor-centric adverse outcome pathway networks for plastic additives

Plastics are widespread pollutants found in atmospheric, terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems due to their extensive usage and environmental persistence. Plastic additives, that are intentionally added to achieve specific functionality in plastics, leach into the environment upon plastic degradation and pose considerable risk to ecological and human health. Limited knowledge concerning the presence of plastic additives throughout plastic life cycle has hindered their effective regulation, thereby posing risks to product safety. In this study, we leveraged the adverse outcome pathway (AOP) framework to understand the mechanisms underlying plastic additives-induced toxicities. We first identified an exhaustive list of 6470 plastic additives from chemicals documented in plastics. Next, we leveraged heterogenous toxicogenomics and biological endpoints data from five exposome-relevant resources, and identified associations between 1287 plastic additives and 322 complete and high quality AOPs within AOP–Wiki. Based on these plastic additive–AOP associations, we constructed a stressor-centric AOP network, wherein the stressors are categorized into ten priority use sectors and AOPs are linked to 27 disease categories. We visualized the plastic additives–AOP network for each of the 1287 plastic additives and made them available in a dedicated website: https://cb.imsc.res.in/saopadditives/. Finally, we showed the utility of the constructed plastic additives–AOP network by identifying highly relevant AOPs associated with benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P), bisphenol A (BPA), and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and thereafter, explored the associated toxicity pathways in humans and aquatic species. Overall, the constructed plastic additives–AOP network will assist regulatory risk assessment of plastic additives, thereby contributing towards a toxic-free circular economy for plastics.

The time for ambitious action is now: Science-based recommendations for plastic chemicals to inform an effective global plastic treaty

The ubiquitous and global ecological footprint arising from the rapidly increasing rates of plastic production, use, and release into the environment is an important modern environmental issue. Of increasing concern are the risks associated with at least 16,000 chemicals present in plastics, some of which are known to be toxic, and which may leach out both during use and once exposed to environmental conditions, leading to environmental and human exposure. In response, the United Nations member states agreed to establish an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, the global plastics treaty. The resolution acknowledges that the treaty should prevent plastic pollution and its related impacts, that effective prevention requires consideration of the transboundary nature of plastic production, use and pollution, and that the full life cycle of plastics must be addressed. As a group of scientific experts and members of the Scientists' Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty, we concur that there are six essential “pillars” necessary to truly reduce plastic pollution and allow for chemical detoxification across the full life cycle of plastics. These include a plastic chemical reduction and simplification, safe and sustainable design of plastic chemicals, incentives for change, holistic approaches for alternatives, just transition and equitable interventions, and centering human rights. There is a critical need for scientifically informed and globally harmonized information, transparency, and traceability criteria to protect the environment and public health. The right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment must be upheld, and thus it is crucial that scientists, industry, and policy makers work in concert to create a future free from hazardous plastic contamination.

Plastic Versus Bioplastic as Packaging for Sanitary Products: The Environmental Impacts Comparison

ABSTRACTPlastic or bioplastic? Which is the least impactful flexible packaging solution for the environment? In literature, few works try to answer this question, and most of them are focused on food packaging applications, comparing only polylactic acid (PLA) with polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or other virgin plastics. Besides these lacks in the literature, this work aims at contributing to the scientific knowledge, helping in the meanwhile packaging companies to choose the best solution also for hygienic and sanitary applications as far as the environmental impact is concerned. The study is focused on the life cycle assessment of four solutions made of maize starch, PLA and polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT), low‐density polyethylene (LDPE) and a recycled LDPE (R‐LDPE). The functional unit was a flexible packaging containing 10 sanitary towels. Primary data were retrieved thanks to an Italian company, whereas secondary data were extracted from the Ecoinvent 3.7 database. The SimaPro 9.4 software has been used to calculate the global warming, water consumption, acidification and abiotic depletion of elements and fossil fuels of each packaging solution. The results show that the raw materials and packaging production are the most impactful phases during the life cycle of plastics and bioplastics packaging, if compared to the distribution phase, the auxiliary materials involved and the final disposal. Great benefits could be gained using recycled plastics, which allow to reduce the extraction of virgin materials and overall appear as the best solution from an environmental point of view to package also sanitary products.

From sustainable macro debris chemical recycling to microplastic reclamation: Overview, research challenges, and outlook

The current surge in plastic waste generation from human activities has led to environmental hazards associated with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), from mismanaged polymeric waste and its derived free plastic debris. Chemical recycling enables the effective end-of-life (EoL) of plastic wastes and debris by transforming them into value-added chemicals, reducing their offsite manufacturing's environmental and social risks related to SDG 13 (Climate Action) while mitigating plastic pollution associated with SDG 6, SDG 14 (Life Below Water), and SDG 15 (Life on Land). Herein, this work examines the recent research progress, technological advancements, and policy implications on the chemical recycling of plastic waste and derived debris from macro to micro levels and implications for achieving SDGs. We identify three primary research challenges related to plastic pollution mitigation: 1. Understanding the extent of plastic pollution and consequences by sources originating from human activities; 2. Exploring the sustainable material life cycle of plastics with minimum waste generation, free debris exposure and pollution related to SDGs 14 and 15, and carbon emissions aligned with SDG 13; 3. Indicating the necessary local and global efforts to deploy plastic production, use, and waste management as per sustainable plastic life cycle concepts associated with SDG 12 (Responsible Production and Consumption). Future perspective directions lie in mitigating plastic pollution on both the sources identified by plastic waste and derived debris generation from individual human activity and the sinks associated with free debris exposure to natural environments. Reducing plastic use, waste reuse, repurposing, and recycling can fully mitigate these negative externalities but also generate greenhouse gas emissions, which requires decarbonization under climate commitments.

Microplastic Sources, Reduction and Remediation: Current State and Future Trends

Plastic waste (PW) and microplastics (MPs) pollution represent one of the main ecological challenges and thus attract society's increasing attention. The exponential growth of plastics' presence and its small (1 μm – 5 mm) particles (MPs) in the environment and inhabiting species is a consequence of linear economy employment. The circular economy has been proposed as the promising route to using plastics more sustainably, and its implementation in the plastic management system is imposed to reduce MPs release. As MPs are emitted in all phases of the plastic life cycle, actions at all levels of the value chain are necessary. Prioritizing the entire plastic value chain also became the goal of more recent plastic pollution regulations, contrary to the previous ones, primarily prohibiting particular plastic items. The microplastic minimization strategy follows an upside-down pyramid, beginning with prevention, then reducing, reusing, recycling, recovering, and finally disposal, which is the least desired alternative. New technologies development for synthetic polymer production and remediation technologies innovations are another key component of the circular economy model. This study outlines microplastics' primary and secondary sources, summarizes the current methods for MPs elimination from different media along with their benefits and drawbacks, and highlights the importance of circular economy principles employment to minimize the MPs' pollution and their possible environmental repercussions.

Combating plastic pollution in international law: <i>lex lata</i> and <i>lex ferenda</i>

INTRODUCTION. Global plastic production has increased from 1.5 million tons in 1950 to 390 million tons in 2021, of which only 9 % was recycled, 19 % was incinerated, almost 50 % was disposed of in landfills and 22 % was dumped in landfills, where this waste could be openly burned or released back into the environment. Plastics have changed the global economy and the lives of billions of people for the better. However, their use comes with significant environmental and social costs. Plastic waste negatively affects human health and the environment. The life cycle of plastics covers the entire spectrum of activities, from raw material extraction, production, distribution, use, to disposal as waste, and environmental problems can arise at any stage of the plastic life cycle. Most plastic degrades very slowly in the environment. There are currently a number of international commitments to reduce marine litter and plastic waste, particularly from land-based sources, and several applicable international agreements and soſt law instruments related to trade in plastics or reducing impacts on marine life. However, none of the international documents provides a global, mandatory, specific and measurable target to reduce plastic pollution. In this regard, many states, as well as commercial actors and civil society, are calling for the adoption of a global instrument to regulate marine pollution from litter and plastics. In this article, significant attention is paid to the analysis of a future treaty aimed at combating plastic pollution.MATERIALS AND METHODS. This study is based on the analysis of a large volume of materials, including international legal acts, advisory acts, as well as modern doctrinal studies by Russian and foreign authors. The methodological basis of the study was general scientific (method of logical and system analysis, dialectical method, methods of deduction and induction) and special scientific (historical-legal, comparative-legal, formal legal methods, method of legal modeling and forecasting) methods of cognition.RESEARCH RESULTS. In the course of the study, various international acts of a mandatory and recommendatory nature were analyzed, the doctrinal positions set out in the scientific literature, put forward by domestic and foreign legal scholars, were summarized, and the main problems of combating plastic pollution were identified.DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS. Within the framework of this article, an attempt has been made to give answers to the following questions: to what extent the problem of plastic pollution is an important challenge for modern international law, whether current international law effectively regulates the problem of plastic pollution, what should be the content of a new treaty on plastic and what are the positions of states on its content.

Global Plastic Pollution and the Transition Towards a Circular Economy: Lessons from the EU’s Legal Framework on Plastics

Since the 1950s, billions of tons of primary plastic waste have been generated around the globe to date. Instead of the current linear make-use-dispose plastic economy, a circular plastics economy is said to be able to reduce plastic pollution in the environment. Recently, the United Nations Environment Assembly adopted a resolution to forge a globally binding treaty addressing plastic pollution by addressing the full life cycle of plastics and by taking such a circular approach. A circular approach for plastics has already been adopted by the EU. Therefore, this contribution sets out some lessons that the UN Treaty can learn from the implementation of the EU’s circular approach for plastics. These relate to the restriction on placing on the market of certain plastic products, the introduction of ecodesign requirements and the establishment of EPR schemes. The EU legal framework on plastics shows that it is important to take into account the inherent interlinkage between not only plastic life cycle stages, but also between the different provisions and obligations, in order to maximize the contribution to and unlock synergies in tackling plastic pollution.

Recyclable, but not recycled—an indicator to quantify the environmental impacts of plastic waste disposal

With an exponential increase in the production and consumption of plastic products over the last few years, the predominantly linear (take-make-dispose) economy of the plastic life cycle has captured global attention. Even though plastic products offer versatile benefits with their properties across different sectors, with a global recycling rate of less than 10%, it is challenging to reduce the pollution generated by plastic waste. Also, the loss of resources due to the uncontrolled disposal of plastic waste has been projected to cause long-term negative effects on the environment. To ensure a better circularity of the plastic flows across the world, it is essential to design plastic products that have an adequate infrastructure to recover and recycle the waste no matter where they are used. The polymer manufacturers and the plastics converters must account for the environmental impacts of the resources lost in the environment due to the lack of recycling infrastructure as a part of Extended Producer Responsibility. This study introduces an indicator that accounts for the loss of resources and proposes for a better methodology to quantify the environmental impacts of polymers and plastic products, based on their recyclability and the availability of recycling infrastructure to handle them. By integrating the loss of resources with the environmental impacts of specific polymers used in specific plastic products, the stakeholders across the value chain have the choice to select the polymers and products that are actually recycled, thereby reducing their environmental impacts and increasing the circularity.

Defining an effective “plastics treaty” through national perspectives and visions during early negotiations

Abstract With increased international concern over the pervasive plastic pollution problem, early negotiations to develop a legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution (“the Plastics Treaty”) were supported by 175 member countries toward a sustainable plastics future. Defining features of the plastics treaty by UNEP member countries began in Punta del Este, Uruguay in November 2022 during the first session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-1). However, INC-1 ended with many unanswered questions regarding the structure, scope, and targets of the treaty. Sixty-seven member countries, including members of the High Coalition Ambition, submitted their objectives, guiding principles, and expectations for the treaty before the INC-2 negotiations while also suggesting measures for its effective implementation. This paper compiles submissions of the 67 member countries and evidence-based policymaking approaches that have been described in peer-reviewed and gray literature following INC-1, but before the INC-2 negotiations in Paris, France in June 2023. Recommendations for developing an effective plastics treaty by most member countries include incorporating the complete life cycle of plastics, promotion of transparency in global trade through uniform labeling measures, capping virgin plastic production, incorporating extended producer responsibility to develop a circular economy, and addressing hazardous chemicals in plastics. Suggested implementation measures include building a multilateral fund, supporting smaller countries with technology transfer, improving local stakeholder engagement, developing subsidiary bodies, and regular national reporting. Encouragingly, many of these national plans were proposed in the Zero Draft document released in September 2023 before INC-3 in Nairobi, Kenya in November 2023 and further developed in the revised draft text which served as the provisional agenda at INC-4 in April 2024 in Ottawa, Canada.

Will the Global Plastics Treaty break the plastic wave? The beginning of a long discussion road

Abstract We are experiencing the effects of the triple planetary crisis—climate change, loss of nature, and pollution—aggravated by plastic pollution. Despite widespread global awareness of the adverse effects of plastic pollution, its ongoing increase remains persistent, with an annual increase in plastic consumption and incorrect disposal contributing to this serious problem. In 2022, 175 nations agreed to begin negotiations by the end of 2024 on a binding international agreement to control the life cycle of plastics, including preventing marine pollution. To ensure the efficacy of the Global Plastics Treaty for mitigating plastic pollution, the extensive participation of researchers is imperative. The literature focuses on efforts in line with ongoing negotiations. In this study, a systematic review of the Global Plastics Treaty was conducted. The analyzed literature mainly focuses on the adverse effects of plastic pollution, legislation, governance, and the economy. The resulting comprehensive overview of the subject can support ongoing negotiations and guide future research about the Global Plastics Treaty.

Climate Change and Plastic Pollution: A Review of Their Connections

The world faces two major environmental issues concurrently, namely climate change and plastic pollution. Though seemingly unrelated, they intricately influence each other. This review aims to present the intricate connections between climate change and plastic pollution through the review of recent literature in these genres. The review explains that global warming could increase plastic degradation through physical, chemical, and biological processes, leading to an increased abundance of microplastics. Global warming enhances the leaching of chemicals from microplastics. Higher temperatures promote desorption of chemicals sorbed on plastics by providing the adsorbates with more kinetic energy to overcome attractions with the adsorbents. Higher temperatures can also promote biofilm formation and alter the microbial community structures of biofilms. Melting sea ice and glaciers associated with warming temperatures release the microplastics trapped in the environment. Sea-level rise and extreme weather events enhance the transfer of microplastics between land, ocean, and air, thus changing their distribution and transport, while ocean acidification may influence the biofouling of microplastics and increase the vulnerability of some corals to the impacts of microplastics. Plastic pollution, however, exacerbates climate change due to the release of greenhouse gases throughout the lifecycle of plastics. Microplastics also adversely affect the growth of microalgae, hence the ocean carbon cycle. Airborne microplastics can alter the energy balance of the Earth through scattering and absorbing radiation. This review suggests a circular economic approach to minimize waste, maximize the reuse and recycling of plastics, and promote the use of plastic substitutes to address both issues.

The Global Plastics Treaty: An Endocrinologist's Assessment.

Plastics are everywhere. They are in many goods that we use every day. However, they are also a source of pollution. In 2022, at the resumed fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly, a historic resolution was adopted with the aim of convening an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment, with the intention to focus on the entire life cycle of plastics. Plastics, in essence, are composed of chemicals. According to a recent report from the secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm conventions, around 13 000 chemicals are associated with plastics and plastic pollution. Many of these chemicals are endocrine-disrupting chemicals and, according to reports by members of the Endocrine Society and others, exposure to some of these chemicals causes enormous costs due to the development of preventable diseases. The global plastics treaty brings the opportunity for harmonized, international regulation of chemicals with endocrine disrupting properties present in plastic products.

Orchestration within plastics governance – From global to Arctic

The lack of coordinated global regulation of plastics with drivers such as increasing production and poor waste management continue to bring vast amounts of plastic pollution into our environments. Plastics are transboundary with often a complex value chain in production, use and waste handling and, until now, a fragmented regulatory response on how to solve this crisis. We utilize Abbott and Bernstein theory of orchestration to understand the actors at play attempting to regulate the life cycle of plastics within the ongoing treaty negotiations. When properly orchestrated, transnational governance can overcome the ineffective and fragmented mechanisms currently in use, thereby improving plastics regulatory performance. We utilize orchestration theory and participate observation at the ongoing treaty negotiations and explore to what degree the challenge of plastic pollution uses state orchestration to speed up the governance process.

ACS journal reports on test of four PET-degrading enzymes

On October 12, 2023, Carbios, a developer of biological technologies to reinvent the life cycle of plastics and textiles, announced the publication scientific journal ACS Catalysis (Impact Factor 13.7), of an article entitled “Assessment of Four Engineered PET Degrading Enzymes Considering Large-Scale Industrial Applications.”

Research Progress on Distribution Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Microplastics in the Environment

The extensive application of plastic products leads to the increasingly significant harm of plastic wastes to the ecological environment, which is also a focus of global environmental issues. Due to the lack of a sound plastic waste management system, most plastic waste is still treated by the traditional mode or remains in the environment, with low recycling efficiency, and the plastic life cycle has not yet formed. Plastics in the environment will age and degrade under the actions of physical (wear, waves), chemical (ultraviolet radiation, hydrolysis), and biological (fungi, bacteria) factors for a long time and generate micro (nano) plastics. Due to their small particle size, large specific surface area, and charged characteristics, in addition to their own toxicity, they can also be used as carriers or covert carriers of pollutants (heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, bacteria, etc.) to migrate in the environment through runoff, sewage discharge, and hydrometeorology, causing ecological environmental pollution. MPs pollution has been listed as the second largest scientific problem in the field of environmental and ecological science by the United Nations Environment Programme. MPs are widely distributed, and there are different degrees of MPs pollution in the global water (freshwater, ocean), soil, and atmospheric environment. Traces of MPs have also been found in human placentas, human breastmilk, living lungs, and blood in recent years. Therefore, the formation mechanisms of MPs under the actions of physics, chemistry, and microorganisms, as well as their abundance levels and migration characteristics in water, soil, and atmosphere environment were comprehensively reviewed, with the hope of providing reference for monitoring the pollution levels of MPs in the environment, exploring their transport laws in the environment, proposing the management strategy of MPs pollution, and revealing the degradation mechanisms of MPs under different effects.

Dark background–surface enhanced Raman spectroscopic detection of nanoplastics: Thermofluidic strategy

This study aims to develop a cost-effective and time-efficient method for detecting nanoplastics, which have recently garnered significant attention due to their potential harmful impact on the water environment (XiaoZhi, 2021; Gigault et al., 2021; Mitrano et al., 2021; Ferreira et al., 2019). Although several techniques are available to accumulate data on microplastics, there is currently no universally accepted analytical technique for detecting nanoplastics (Gigault et al., 2021; Mitrano et al., 2021; Mitrano et al., 2019; Cai et al., 2021a; Allen et al., 2022). In this study, we have developed a substrate that exhibits Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) (Zhou et al., 2021; Lv et al., 2020; Lê et al., 2021; Hu et al., 2022; Chang et al., 2022; Yang et al., 2022; Xu et al., 2020; Jeon et al., 2021; Lee and Fang, 2022; Vélez-Escamilla and Contreras-Torres, 2022; Liu et al., 2022; Xie et al., 2023) activity over a large area and a dark background in optical (darkfield mode) vision, enabling the detection of sparkling nanoplastics on the substrate. This darkfield-based strategy allows for the point-by-point detection of single nanoplastics, offering cost and time-saving advantages over other resource-intensive analytical techniques. Our findings reveal the presence of PP nanoplastics in commonly used laboratory equipment, individual PE nanoplastics from a hot water-contained commercial paper cup, and the first detection of natural nanoplastics in coastal seawater. We believe that this technique will have a universal application in establishing a global map of nanoplastics and advancing our understanding of the environmental life cycle of plastics.