What would the products of photolysis degredation of PET plastic be?

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The discussion centers on the issue of taint in plastic drinking bottles caused by UV degradation of PET plastic when exposed to sunlight. Participants express interest in finding a catalyst that could render PET byproducts non-water soluble or enable their evaporation, aiming to mitigate the degradation while ensuring that the plastic does not leach into the contents of the bottles. The challenge lies in balancing the degradation process with the need for a long shelf life and safe consumption. There is a recognition that while the exterior surface of the bottle may be less critical, treating the interior poses significant challenges due to its geometry. Relevant research links on the physico-chemical modifications of PET and UV effects are shared to support the discussion.
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Interested in this because plastic drinking bottles have a taint to them when left out in the sun. I gather its from UV degredation of the PET plastic.

I'd like to find a catalyst that would allow the PET byproducts to be non water soluble/sequester or even evaporate.
 
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lostminty said:
Interested in this because plastic drinking bottles have a taint to them when left out in the sun. I gather its from UV degredation of the PET plastic.

I'd like to find a catalyst that would allow the PET byproducts to be non water soluble/sequester or even evaporate.
One has to balance that degradation against the desire for non-leaching of the plastic into the contents and long shelf life.

The exterior surface could be less critical than the interior surface, but it's difficult to treat the interior in a bottle given the geometry.

Here's some research on PET and UV.
Physico-chemical modifications of the DBD and UV irradiation treatments on the PET and PET+TiO2 films
http://134.147.160.41/ispcdocs/ispc16/CostPapers/497.pdf

See also
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultraviolet#Degradation_of_polymers.2C_pigments_and_dyes
 
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