Degradation study of latex balloons in freshwater, saltwater and industrial compost environments
Latex balloons act like plastic in the ocean: they can travel far from their point of origin on atmospheric and water currents and float at the sea surface where they can be eaten by wildlife that mistake it for food. This study quantified the degradation behaviours of latex balloons in saltwater, freshwater, and industrial compost windrows over 16 weeks. The degradation of latex balloons was quantified with bi-weekly measurements of 1) changes in mass; 2) ultimate tensile strength; and 3) changes in surficial composition of balloons via attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR). This study tested whether degradation differed between two balloon colours (blue and white) and whether degradation differed between balloons whose packaging labels included the word "biodegradable" and balloons whose packaging did not contain the word "biodegradable", and were thus labeled as "traditional" balloons. Thus, these data consist of 1) mass measurements; 2) load-extension data used to determine ultimate tensile strength; and 3) ATR-FTIR spectra of latex balloons across the variables balloon type (biodegradable; traditional), colour (blue; white), and week sampled (0-16 weeks). Also included are measurements of balloons that did not undergo treatments and are either straight out of the package ("new") or balloons that were inflated but did not undergo any treatments ("inflated").
Simple
Identification info
- Date (Creation)
- 2020-04-28
- Citation identifier
-
doi:10.25959/5eb21cba78c98
- Title
- Information and documentation - Digital object identifier system
- Date (Publication)
- 2019-02-01T00:00:00
- Citation identifier
-
ISO 26324:2012
- Citation identifier
-
https://doi.org/10.25959/5eb21cba78c98
Principal investigator
Principal investigator
- Credit
- Zoos Victoria, funding
- Credit
- Hobart City Council Waste Management Grant, funding
- Credit
- The Pay Me Group, funding
- Credit
- US-to-Australia Graduate Education Scholarship, American Australian Association, funding
- Credit
- D. Haines, Agilent Technologies, use and advice regarding ATR-FTIR
- Credit
- M. Adams, IMAS UTAS, access and logistical support to IMAS UTAS Aquaculture Facility
- Credit
- M. Leef, IMAS UTAS, access and logistical support to IMAS UTAS laboratories
- Credit
- J. Holmes and D. Suter, McRobies Waste Management Centre, access and logistical support to composting space
- Credit
- C. Gerard, D. Holloway, A. Bylett, UTAS Engineering Department, access and logistical support for tensile strength measurements
- Credit
- Detached Cultural Organization, funding
- Status
- Completed
Point of contact
Point of contact
- Topic category
-
- Oceans
Extent
Temporal extent
- Time period
- 2019-09-04 2019-12-12
- Maintenance and update frequency
- Not planned
- Keywords (Theme)
-
- pollution
- polymer
- compost
- anthropogenic debris
- NASA/GCMD Keywords, Version 8.5
-
- EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOLOGICAL DYNAMICS | ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONS | DECOMPOSITION
- EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOLOGICAL DYNAMICS | ECOTOXICOLOGY
- EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOSYSTEMS | ANTHROPOGENIC/HUMAN INFLUENCED ECOSYSTEMS
- EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOSYSTEMS | AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS
- EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOSYSTEMS | FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS
- EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOSYSTEMS | MARINE ECOSYSTEMS
- EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOSYSTEMS | MARINE ECOSYSTEMS | COASTAL | BEACHES
- EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOSYSTEMS | MARINE ECOSYSTEMS | PELAGIC
- EARTH SCIENCE | HUMAN DIMENSIONS | ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
- EARTH SCIENCE | HUMAN DIMENSIONS | ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS | CONSERVATION
- EARTH SCIENCE | HUMAN DIMENSIONS | SOCIAL BEHAVIOR | RECYCLING
- Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC): Fields of Research
- Keywords (Theme)
-
- Latex balloon mass
- Latex balloon ATR-FTIR absorbance
- Latex balloon ATR-FTIR wavelengths
- Latex balloon extension-load for tensile strengh determination
- Latex balloon extension-load for tensile strength determination
Resource constraints
- Classification
- Unclassified
Resource constraints
- Use limitation
- The data described in this record are the intellectual property of the University of Tasmania through the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies.
Resource constraints
- Linkage
-
http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by/4.0/88x31.png
License Graphic
- Title
- Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
- Website
-
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
License Text
- Other constraints
- Cite data as: Gilmour, M. & Lavers, J. (2020). Degradation study of latex balloons in freshwater, saltwater and industrial compost environments. Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), University of Tasmania (UTAS). doi:10.25959/5eb21cba78c98
- Language
- English
- Character encoding
- UTF8
Content Information
- Content type
- Physical measurement
- Description
- Mass measured to nearest 0.0000g with analytical balance, Model GR-202, A & D Company, Limited, Japan. Mass_type refers to mass measured either before treatment ("pre") or after treatment ("post").
- Name
-
Latex balloon mass
- Name
-
Mass_grams
- Name
- gram
- Description
- Attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), measured with an Agilent 4500a FTIR (model 0021-010; Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara, California, USA) with a single-reflection diamond ATR crystal. Thirty-two scans were co-added at a spectral resolution of 8 cm-1 in the range of 4000-650 cm-1 with a Happ-Genzel apodization. Each spectrum had 901 data points. Background measurements were sampled every 10 min. Measurement_location refers to whether the measurement was sampled on the inside or outside of the balloon.
- Name
-
Latex balloon ATR-FTIR absorbance
- Name
-
absorbance_arb.units
- Name
- arbitrary units
- Description
- Wavelengths at which absorbance measurements were taken via Attenuated Total Reflection Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), measured with an Agilent 4500a FTIR (model 0021-010; Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara, California, USA) with a single-reflection diamond ATR crystal. Thirty-two scans were co-added at a spectral resolution of 8 cm-1 in the range of 4000-650 cm-1 with a Happ-Genzel apodization. Each spectrum had 901 data points. Background measurements were sampled every 10 min. Measurement_location refers to whether the measurement was sampled on the inside or outside of the balloon.
- Name
-
Latex balloon ATR-FTIR wavelengths
- Name
-
wave_length_cm
- Name
- cm^-1
- Description
- Measurements made with a Universal Testing Machine (Hounsfield Test Equipment, UK), generally following ASTM D683-14 with a speed pf 100 mm/min, using 5% of the total load of the machine. Data were collected via a computer interface that sampled 10 points/sec.
- Name
-
Latex balloon extension-load for tensile strengh determination
- Name
-
Extension_mm
- Name
- mm
- Description
- Measurements made with a Universal Testing Machine (Hounsfield Test Equipment, UK), generally following ASTM D683-14 with a speed pf 100 mm/min, using 5% of the total load of the machine. Data were collected via a computer interface that sampled 10 points/sec.
- Name
-
Latex balloon extension-load for tensile strength determination
- Name
-
Load_kN
- Name
- kilo-Newtons
Distribution Information
- Distribution format
-
-
.csv
-
.csv
- OnLine resource
-
DATA ACCESS - explore file index for download
Resource lineage
- Statement
- Balloon purchase & preparation: Blue and white latex balloons with packaging containing the word "biodegradable" and with packaging that did not contain the word "biodegradable" (hereafter referred to as "traditional") were purchased locally (Tasmania, Australia) and on the Internet. Balloons were inflated to 25 cm diameter with air, sealed with knots, and tied to a cotton rope outdoors with a 100% wool string. Balloons were hung outside for a minimum of 6 hr to simulate typical use. Balloons were deflated by cutting a 1 cm hole near the knot to allow air to escape slowly without the balloon bursting. Wool strings were removed and balloons were weighed to the nearest 0.0000 g on an analytical balance. Balloons were then deployed in one of three treatments: freshwater, saltwater, or industrial compost. Balloons deployed in freshwater and saltwater treatments had individual identification numbers assigned to them to aid in pairwise measurements of mass. Treatments: Latex balloons in freshwater and saltwater treatments were deployed into outdoor glass water tanks at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies Aquaculture Facility at the University of Tasmania (Newnham, Tasmania, Australia) with aeration stones to maintain water movement and oxygenation. Biodegradable and traditional balloons were placed in separate tanks. Freshwater was sourced from locally collected rainwater (pH=7.0) and prefiltered (0.2 micrometers) saltwater was obtained from the Tamar River, for which salinity was increased from 31-32 ppt to 35 ppt as needed with incremental additions of sodium chloride. Latex balloons in the industrial compost treatment were placed in compost windrows at McRobies Gully Waste Management Centre (South Hobart, Tasmania, Australia). Biodegradable and traditional balloons were placed in separate windrows. Compost consisted of mulch from wood chips and food and animal waste from commercial aquaculture and poultry processors. The compost was manually turned over every 14 days. Compost temperatures were not measured in this study, but in similar studies at this site, internal compost temperatures ranged 40-55°C. Balloons that did not undergo any treatments were also included in ultimate tensile strength and ATR-FTIR measurements; these balloons were either straight out of the package ("new") or they were inflated and hung outside for a minimum of 6 hr but did not undergo further treatment ("inflated"). Sampling: Latex balloons were sampled at random every 14 days from the three treatments for a total of 16 weeks. Ten balloons of each color and each balloon type were sampled from each treatment on each sample day, resulting in 120 balloons sampled every two weeks. Due to difficulty in locating balloons in the compost, sample sizes for the compost treatment could sometimes be smaller than 10 balloons per color per balloon type in a given week. After sampling, balloons were rinsed with tap water and dried under a vacuum vent for 96 hr. Mass: Mass was measured to the nearest 0.0000 g on an analytical balance (Model GR-202, A & D Company, Limited, Japan) after balloons were completely dry. Ultimate Tensile Strength: Ultimate tensile strength was determined with a Universal Testing Machine (Hounsfield Test Equipment, UK), generally following ASTM D638-14. Testing parameters were as follows: speed=100 mm/min, using 5% of the total load of the machine. A computer interface recorded extension and load data at a rate of 10 points per second. Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR): Measurements were collected on randomly selected location on the insides and the outsides of latex balloons with an Agilent 4500a FTIR (model 0021-010, Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara, California USA) with a single-reflection diamond ATR crystal. 32 scans were co-added at a spectral resolution of 8 cm-1 in the 4000-6500 cm-1 range with a Happ-Genzel apodization, resulting in each spectrum having 901 data points. Background measurements were taken every 10 minutes.
- Hierarchy level
- Dataset
Metadata
- Metadata identifier
-
1c0f1282-b8fc-4a8f-9990-2e91196a9834
- Language
- English
- Character encoding
- UTF8
Point of contact
Type of resource
- Resource scope
- Dataset
- Metadata linkage
-
https://metadata.imas.utas.edu.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/catalog.search#/metadata/1c0f1282-b8fc-4a8f-9990-2e91196a9834
Point of truth URL of this metadata record
- Date info (Creation)
- 2020-09-17T10:32:14
- Date info (Revision)
- 2020-09-17T10:32:14
Metadata standard
- Title
- ISO 19115-3:2018