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[3] 1856: Parkesine, the first member of the Celluloid class of compounds and considered the first man-made plastic, is patented by Alexander Parkes. [4] 1869: John Wesley Hyatt discovers a method to simplify the production of celluloid, making industrial production possible. 1872: PVC is accidentally synthesized in 1872 by German chemist Eugen ...
By one estimate, one billion tons of plastic waste have been discarded since the 1950s. [52] Others estimate a cumulative human production of 8.3-billion tons of plastic, of which 6.3-billion tons is waste, with only 9% getting recycled. [53] It is estimated that this waste is made up of 81% polymer resin, 13% polymer fibers and 32% additives.
Global Plastic Production (1950-2022) [2] Plastics production has been growing globally. The numbers include thermoplastics and polyurethanes, as well as thermosets, adhesives, coatings, sealants, and PP-fibers. [1] Data was gathered by PlasticsEurope (PEMRG) and Consultic, or the nova-institute. [3] [4]
It is estimated that there is a stock of 86 million tons of plastic marine debris in the worldwide ocean as of the end of 2013, with an assumption that 1.4% of global plastics produced from 1950 to 2013 has entered the ocean and has accumulated there. [9] Global plastic production has surged from 1.5 million tons in the 1950s to 335 million ...
By using data on surface plastic concentration (pieces of plastic per km 2) from 1972 to 1985 (n=60) and 2002–2012 (n=457) within the same plastic accumulation zone, the study found the mean plastic concentration increase between the two sets of data, including a 10-fold increase of 18,160 to 189,800 pieces of plastic per km 2.
From the start of plastic production through to 2015, the world produced around 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic waste, only 9% of which has been recycled and only ~1% has been recycled more than once. [7] Of the remaining waste, 12% was incinerated and 79% was either sent to landfills or lost to the environment as pollution. [7]
[5] [6] The earliest date that nurdles were recorded being seen on beaches was around the 1970s but have been recorded as being used earlier around the 1940s and 1950s. [3] The pellets find their way into the ocean in a multitude of ways, including accidental spills in transport, and move quickly as they are small enough to be blown around by ...
1940-1945: During World War II, an increase in plastic production is seen as it is used in many wartime materials. Due to government funding and oversight the United States production of plastics (in general, not just bioplastics) tripled during 1940-1945 (Rogers 2005). [91]