Degradation study of latex balloons in freshwater, saltwater and industrial compost environments

• Other Authors: Gilmour, Morgan (pointOfContact), Gilmour, Morgan (hasPrincipalInvestigator), IMAS Data Manager (pointOfContact), Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), University of Tasmania (UTAS) (hasAssociationWith), Lavers, Jennifer (pointOfContact), Lavers, Jennifer (hasPrincipalInvestigator), Lavers, Jennifer L (pointOfContact), Lavers, Jennifer L (hasPrincipalInvestigator), Lavers, Jennifer L. (pointOfContact), Lavers, Jennifer L. (hasPrincipalInvestigator)
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: University of Tasmania, Australia
• Subjects: oceans; pollution; polymer; compost; anthropogenic debris; 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; Conservation and Biodiversity; ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND MANAGEMENT; Marine and Estuarine Ecology (incl. Marine Ichthyology); BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES; ECOLOGY; 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; Antarc*; Antarctic; Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies
• Online Access: https://researchdata.edu.au/degradation-study-latex-compost-environments/1730190; https://doi.org/10.25959/5eb21cba78c98

Maintenance and Update Frequency: notPlanned 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 ...