3rd TAGRA

An early assessment estimated 10.36 million tonnes/year of plastic waste in the five littoral countries: Russia 7.15 million tonnes, Iran 1.8 million, Kazakhstan 950,000, Azerbaijan 290,000, and Turkmenistan 170,000 tonnes. About 425,000 tonnes/year were generated in coastal areas, with 58,000–155,000 tonnes/year entering the Caspian Sea. The 2019 Tehran Convention report lists coastlines of 955 km for Azerbaijan, 1,000 km for Iran, 2,320 km for Kazakhstan, and 1,200 km for Turkmenistan, while Russia has a longer coastline. In 2024, 4.07 million people lived in Azerbaijan’s Caspian coastal zone: Baku (2.35 million), Absheron (434,000), and Sumgait (428,000), indicating anthropogenic pressure. Wastewater, petroleum products, and other pollutants may enter the marine ecosystem. Marine plastics undergo aging, embrittlement, cracking, and fragmentation under temperature, solar/UV radiation, oxygen, ozone, ionizing radiation, water pressure, waves, mechanical forces, salinity, pH, and microorganisms. Waves, sand, gravel, and rocks accelerate abrasion and surface damage, while water pressure, salinity, pH, and microorganisms influence surface processes.
This study investigates plastic properties, packaging liquids, seawater parameters, chemical interactions, and surface chemical/mechanical changes caused by external factors. Post-consumer PP, PS, and PET were characterized using XRF, FTIR spectroscopy, mechanical testing (tensile strength, elongation at break, Young’s modulus), and seawater analysis. Surface, physicochemical, chemical, and photochemical changes induced by gamma irradiation, ozone, and UV irradiation were investigated. Results may improve understanding of plastic degradation and microplastic formation in the Caspian Sea.The work is conducted within IAEA Technical Cooperation Project RER7016, “Enhancing Coastal Management in Fresh and Saltwater Bodies by Using Nuclear Analytical Techniques, Including the Monitoring of Microplastics.”