A Canadian scientist believes he has found the answer to the strange white spots that have been appearing along the coast of Newfoundland.
Memorial University professor Christopher M. Kozak was determined to find out what the strange sticky substance was after the university obtained samples from Placentia Bay.
Now, “with a high degree of confidence,” Kozak believes it is a PVA butyl rubber compound, which is used in the oil and gas industry to clean oil pipes and is found in glue, he said. The New York Times.
“(This) suggests some type of industrial adhesive or some type of material that could be used in a variety of industrial sectors,” he said.
Newfoundland is known as a center of fishing and industry, and the spots started appearing a few months ago.
Canada’s environmental agency is also investigating the strange substance, but would not comment on Kozak’s hypothesis while they are still investigating the matter.
Assistant professor Hilary Corlett traveled to Placentia Bay to collect the samples, and the team of scientists helping Kozak hypothesized that they were polyurethane, which is commonly used to insulate vessels in the region, according to the NYT.
When the sample arrived, he said the guardian: ‘The first thing I did was prick it and smell it.’
Memorial University professor Christopher M. Kozak was determined to find out what the strange white spots that looked like undercooked dough were after the university obtained samples of them in Placentia Bay.
Now, “with a high degree of confidence”, Kozak (pictured) believes it is a PVA butyl rubber compound, which is used in the oil and gas industry to clean oil pipes and is found in glues .
He discovered that the substance had a “rubbery” texture, “like overworked bread dough,” which led them to think that it was an elastomeric polymer.
“And the smell it gave off was like walking through the solvent aisle of a hardware store,” he told the British media.
After several rounds of testing, they discovered that the item had no carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen or oxygen, meaning it couldn’t be something natural and it’s all found in the polyurethane. It also did not contain sulfur.
Kozak then performed spectroscopy, which studies the structure of atoms and molecules, and discovered that it had chemical bonds similar to polyvinyl acetate, which is found in shipping industry adhesive, according to The Guardian.
A mass spectrometry they also performed found that it had characteristics of synthetic rubber.
“I did eight different tests and they all point towards something synthetic,” the chemist told The Guardian.
All of this led them to determine that the material was a butyl rubber PVA compound, which can be found in white glue.
“I’m pretty sure the sample I handled was PVA butylene rubber,” he told The Times.
“(This) suggests some type of industrial adhesive or some type of material that could be used in a variety of industrial sectors,” he said. He discovered that the substance had a “rubbery” texture, “like overworked bread dough,” which initially led them to think that it was an elastomeric polymer.
The Canadian government has said it found the spots along 45 kilometers of coastline.
However, he fears that most of the bubbles have sunk underwater, since it is denser than water. The Canadian government has said it found the spots along 45 kilometers of coastline, according to The Guardian.
‘All we are seeing is what is being washed ashore. “I suspect a lot of these things are at the bottom of the sea and are churned up by the comings and goings of the tide,” he told The Guardian.
‘This definitely does not belong in the environment. “It is plastic pollution and what worries me is that, due to its shape, marine fauna may mistake it for food.”
But what he found most amusing about the strange spots was that it took so long for someone to contact a scientist.
‘It’s curious that no one thought of going to a chemist until very late. “Everyone had their own opinions and speculations, but no one really took a scientific and experimental point of view,” he told The Guardian.