To study the interaction of mercury (Hg) with plastics in coastal marine environments, a total of 353 plastic items were collected from 4 beaches located on the Spanish Mediterranean coast, with different characteristics. Concentrations ranged from 5 to 8216 nmol kg⁻¹ and were greater on beaches more influenced by the mining activity. A preference of Hg for polymers such as polyurethane (PUR) and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), and for certain colours such as black, red and brown was observed. The state of degradation proved crucial, as Hg levels increased with the aging of the plastic. Although new commercial plastic items already contain Hg associated with their manufacturing process, they are able to adsorb even more once in the marine environment, by being in contact with larger quantities of this element in the ocean microlayer and acting as vectors of this element to the beaches. Once there, plastics are transported by winds and tides to the middle and high part of the beach, where the sunlight results in the volatilization of Hg to the atmosphere, decreasing the levels of this element in plastics.

为了研究沿海海洋环境中汞与塑料的相互作用，从西班牙地中海沿岸的4个海滩收集了353种塑料物品，这些物品具有不同的特征。浓度范围为5至8216 nmol kg ^-1并且在海滩上受采矿活动影响更大。观察到Hg对于聚合物（例如聚氨酯（PUR）和聚（氯乙烯）（PVC））以及某些颜色（例如黑色，红色和棕色）的偏爱。事实证明，降解状态至关重要，因为汞的含量会随着塑料的老化而增加。尽管新的商用塑料制品已经含有与其制造过程相关的汞，但它们通过与海洋微层中的大量这种元素接触并充当该元素在海洋环境中的媒介，甚至能够在海洋环境中吸附一次。海滩。一旦到达那里，塑料就会随风和潮汐而被运送到海滩的中部和较高处，在那里，阳光会导致汞向大气中的挥发，从而降低了塑料中该元素的含量。