Polymers are used in a variety of different areas, including applications in food packaging, automotive and the semiconductor industry. information about degradation of these materials during application, but also uptake of pollutants from the surrounding environment is therefore of great interest. conventional techniques used for polymer characterization such as ft-iR or Raman spectroscopy, but also thermo-analytical techniques offer insights into degradation processes but lack the possibility to detect uptake of inorganic species. Moreover, these techniques do not allow the measurement of depth profiles, thus information about degradation or pollutant uptake with sample depth is not accessible. in this work, we propose LA-icp-MS and LiBS as powerful analytical tools for polymer characterization, overcoming the limitations of conventional analytical techniques used for polymer analysis. Applicability of the developed procedures is demonstrated by the analysis of artificially weathered polyimides and modern art materials, indicating that the degradation of the polymer but also the uptake of corrosive gases is not limited to the sample surface. finally, a tandem LA-icp-MS/ LiBS approach is employed, which combines the advantages of both laser-based procedures, enabling the simultaneous analysis of polymer degradation and cadmium uptake of polystyrene after exposure to UV radiation and treatment with artificial sea water. Synthetic polymers and plastics are among the most commonly used materials in our modern world 1. They are mainly employed as packaging materials for consumer goods such as food and cosmetics and also bottles and boxes, but also frequently applied for construction materials 2. Polymers are also used as passivation or encapsulation materials in the semiconductor industry 3,4 or, in combination with pigments, as paints in the fields of art and cultural heritage 5,6. In general, the applied synthetic polymers are composed of an organic-carbon-chain polymer and different additives that give the materials the intended chemical and physical properties. Commonly applied additives include plasticizers, antioxidants, antistatic agents, lubricants, flame retardants or inorganic pigments. During application, polymers are often exposed to harmful environmental conditions, causing changes in their chemical composition. In this context, the negative influences of sunlight but also contact with ambient gases and environmental liquids have to be mentioned. Whereas UV light and oxidative gases are known to promote degradation 7-9 , corrosive gases or metals dissolved in rain, snow and river or seawater are susceptible for uptake into the polymer network, resulting in increased concentrations of inorganic constituents in aged materials. All of these possible interactions contribute to unwanted changes in the polymer composition, which finally lead to altered material properties (e.g. bleaching of colors, reduced thermal stability, increased brittleness, etc.). A comprehensive characterization of aged polymers is th...
