Studies in the oceans and The Great Lakes have found several orders of magnitude less plastic in surface samples than predicted by input estimates. Some plastic likely sinks after entering the water because it is naturally more dense than freshwater. For less dense particles, it has been proposed that biofouling, or the buildup of organic materials on the plastic, can cause them to become more dense and ultimately induce sinking. In this work we compare two different functional biofouling models: one basic algal growth population model and one model that assumes photosensitive defouling. We investigate the effects within the scope of a large-scale hydrodynamic model that includes advection, vertical diffusion, and sediment deposition applied to both Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. We find that deposition rates are dependent on the fouling method and lake depth. Lastly, we use the model to develop a first pass mass estimate for the sediment deposition rate in Lake Ontario.

对海洋和五大湖的研究发现，地表样本中的塑料比输入估计所预测的要少几个数量级。一些塑料在进入水中后可能会下沉，因为它的密度自然高于淡水。对于密度较低的颗粒，有人提出生物污垢或有机材料在塑料上的堆积会导致它们变得更密集并最终导致下沉。在这项工作中，我们比较了两种不同的功能性生物污染模型：一种基本的藻类生长种群模型和一种假设光敏去污的模型。我们研究了包括平流在内的大型水动力模型范围内的影响、垂直扩散和沉积物沉积适用于伊利湖和安大略湖。我们发现沉积速率取决于结垢方法和湖泊深度。最后，我们使用该模型对安大略湖的沉积物沉积速率进行了首次通过质量估计。