64-1 Investigating the Translocation Potential of Clay-Sized Thermoset Amino-Formaldehyde Polymers in Sand Columns

Session: Emerging Voices in Soil and Paleosol Science (Posters)

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The translocation of silicate and non-silicate clay sized particles is an extensive soil process that is documented to occur in over half of the total surface area covered by soil globally. It is one of the processes responsible for the subsurface accumulation of clay, the formation of lamellae (clay bands), and texture contrast soils. However, our understanding of plastic particles, an emerging contaminant, is limited in terms of their movement within a porous medium. Understanding the movement of anthropogenic material, such as plastic particles is essential for understanding soil formation, and keeping classification, and mapping up to date. Some prior research has investigated polystyrene nanosphere migration through artificial porous media; however, polystyrene comprises only 6.1% of global plastic production, the particles were silt and sand sized, not clay sized, and studies only focused on the downward movement potential. Using 5 cm diameter columns filled with washed, quartz sand and packed to achieve a bulk density of 1.4 g cm^-3, the upward movement of clay sized thermoset amino-formaldehyde polymers, which constitute approximately 20% of the global plastic production were investigated under different saturation patterns. Findings from this work aim to bridge a critical gap in pedological and terrestrial pollution studies, enhancing our understanding of how anthropogenic material is impacted by pedological processes.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Program. Vol. 57, No. 6, 2025

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-5456

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