Due to human carelessness, plastics find their way into rivers and then into the ocean. The pollution caused by plastic debris is an environmental problem with increasing concern in the ocean. At present, new chemical pollution, though not always visually apparent, is shown clearly by the present study to arise from chemicals produced by debris plastic decomposition/elution in oceans. For clarification of causes leading up to new global chemical contamination from plastics, beach sand and water taken from sites surround Pacific Ocean, were extracted with dichloromethane and analyzed by SIM-GC/MS.  All samples were found to contain the styrene monomer(SM), styrene dimer(SD) and styrene trimer(ST) with a concentration distribution of styrene oligomer analogues in order of ST>SD>SM. The concentration styrene oligomer analogues along the west coast proved more severe than in Alaska and other region.

New analytical method for the determination of styrene oligomers formed from debris polystyrene decomposition and its application at coastline and ocean

248th National Meeting (2014)

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