PLASTICS IN THE OCEANS

Increasing plastic pollution, particularly in oceans, calls for a fundamental shift towards future-proof plastics throughout the circular economy. In a landmark move in 2022, the United Nations adopted a historic resolution to craft an international legally binding instrument to tackle plastic pollution. In line with this global initiative, Plastics in the Oceans investigates the problem of plastic pollution in oceans, proposes solutions relating to current and advanced materials and technologies, and offers an optimal sustainable strategy to eliminate plastic pollution by 2040. The title:

• Addresses the entire lifecycle of plastic, from production and design to disposal, and advocates for a comprehensive approach to mitigate plastic pollution.
• Focuses on primary and secondary microplastics, recognizing their significant impact on marine ecosystems.
• Explores various alternative materials, including biobased biodegradable polymers, as viable alternatives to conventional plastics.
• Provides insights into regulatory frameworks pertaining to plastic pollution across major world regions.
• Elucidates the need for reducing plastic production and enhancing recycling efforts in combating plastic pollution.
• Suggests strategies aligned with the principles of the 3Rs—reduce, redesign, recycle—to foster the development of sustainable and future-proof plastics.

This book is aimed at technical readers in environmental engineering, chemical engineering, and polymer chemistry, as well as general readers interested in scientific solutions to the plastics pollution problem.

Jean-Luc Wertz holds degrees in chemical engineering and economic science, as well as a PhD in applied science specializing in polymer chemistry, all from the Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium. He has held various international positions, serving as the Worldwide Director of R&D at SPONTEX, and as the Technical Director of EDANA. He holds several patents related to various industrial and consumer products. His expertise includes polymers, biobased products, biorefineries and nonwovens. He has written 7 books, 5 of them with CRC Press: Hemicelluloses and Lignin in Biorefineries (2018), Starch in the Bioeconomy (2020), Chitin and Chitosans in the Bioeconomy (2021), Biomass in the Bioeconomy (2022), and Algae in the Bioeconomy (2024).

Olivier Bédué received a degree in chemical engineering from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Paris (ENSCP) and a doctorate in polymer physical chemistry from the University Paris 6 (Jussieu), after which he worked for Spontex Company (Beauvais/France) as a R&D engineer and cellulose technical manager in industrial direction. He is now R&D Senior Manager (scourers/sponges) at the Regional Technical Center Europe for Freudenberg Home and Cleaning Solutions Gmbh (Weinheim/Germany). He is also a European Commission expert. He has written two books in the field of the bioeconomy.

Serge Perez holds a doctorate in sciences from the University of Grenoble, France. He has had international exposure throughout several academic and industry positions in research laboratories in the US, Canada, and France (Centre de Recherches sur les Macromolecules Végétales, CNRS, Grenoble, as the chairperson and as director of research at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility). His research interests span the whole area of structural glycoscience, emphasizing polysaccharides, glycoconjugates, and protein-carbohydrate interactions. He has a strong interest in the economy of glycoscience and e-learning, for which he created www.glycopedia.eu. He is actively involved in scientific societies as president and past president of the European Carbohydrate Organisation. He is the author of more than 330 research publications, which are the subject of a large number of citations and references. He has also edited and written several books on the bioeconomy.