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This study reflects typical consumer textile washing behaviour while taking into account existing standards in the household appliance and garment industries. Two garments were washed repeatedly with artificial dirt and detergent 30 times. The collected washing water was separated using fractional filtration. Textile physical tests were used to follow property changes of the garments, the microplastic release is determined using thermoextraction/desorbtion–gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and the total organic carbon was measured as a sum parameter for the organic bonded carbon. This article shows the importance of a reality‐based approach when investigating microplastics of textile origin in the laundry care process. Deposits of detergent and dirt on the textiles were detected. The total mass of sieve residues was much higher than the release of synthetic polymers. The cotton content of the garments causes a much higher fibre release than synthetic fibres. Both will lead to false results by purely gravimetric analysis because nonpolymer fibres will be included microplastic mass. The results cannot be generalised only by the main polymer type, knowledge of the textile construction must be included for final evaluation.
In recent years, thermoextraction/desorption-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (TED-GC/MS) has been developed as a rapid detection method for the determination of microplastics (MP) mass contents in numerous environmentally relevant matrices and, in particular, for the measurement of polymers in water samples without time-consuming sample preparation. The TED-GC/MS method was applied to investigate a typical European municipal wastewater system for possible MP masses. Such investigations are important in view of the recent revision of the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive. Four different representative sampling sites were selected: greywater (domestic wastewater without toilet), combined sewer, and influent and effluent of a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). All samples were collected by fractional filtration. Filtration was carried out over mesh sizes of 500, 100, 50, and in some cases, 5 µm. Polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polystyrene (PS) were detected in all samples, with the PE fraction dominating in all cases. Styrene-butadiene rubber which serves as an indication of tire abrasion, was only found in the influent of the WWTP. The highest MP mass contents were found in the combined sewer, so MP can become a source of pollution during heavy rain events when the capacity limits of the effluent are reached, and the polluted effluent is released uncontrolled into the environment. Based on the studies, MP retention from the WWTP could be estimated to be approximately 96%. Few trends in polymer type or mass contents were detected within the different fractions of the samples or when comparing samples to each other.
Microplastic detection in water samples becomes important for tracing microplastic sources. Microplastic may harm desalination facilities by blocking filters and disturbing the marine food chain. Thermo analytical methods such as pyrolysis gas chromatography mass spectroscopy, and spectroscopic methods like (micro) Raman spectroscopy or (micro) Fouriertransform infrared spectroscopy in combination with appropriate filters and sample preparation are suitable for analyzing microplastics on a scale from 1 µm to 1000 µm fast and unambiguous. While the thermo analytical methods are suitable for larger sample volumes, Raman spectroscopy and Fouriertransform infrared spectroscopy are able to detect and analyze single microplastic particles for instance in bottled water. Machine learning algorithms ensure a reliable classification of different plastic materials.
The talk is about microplastics in soil. Some results were presented with mainly state of the art according to microplastics in standardization.
Microplastics are small plastic fragments that are widely distributed in marine and terrestrial environments. While the soil ecosystem represents a large reservoir for plastic, research so far has focused mainly on the impact on aquatic ecosystems and there is a lack of information on the potentially adverse effects of microplastics on soil biota. Earthworms are key organisms of the soil ecosystem and are due to their crucial role in soil quality and fertility a suitable and popular model organism in soil ecotoxicology.
Therefore, the aim of this study was to gain insight into the effects of environmentally relevant concentrations of microplastics on the earthworm Eisenia andrei on multiple levels of biological organization after different exposure periods. Earthworms were exposed to two types of microplastics: (1) polystyrene-HBCD and (2) car tire abrasion in natural soil for 2, 7, 14 and 28 d. Acute and chronic toxicity and all subcellular investigations were conducted for all exposure times, avoidance behavior assessed after 48 h and reproduction after 28 d. Subcellular endpoints included enzymatic biomarker responses, namely, carboxylesterase, glutathione peroxidase, acetylcholinesterase, glutathione reductase, glutathione S-transferase and catalase activities, as well as fluorescence-based measurements of oxidative stress-related markers and multixenobiotic resistance activity. Multiple biomarkers showed significant changes in activity, but a recovery of most enzymatic activities could be observed after 28 d. Overall, only minor effects could be observed on a subcellular level, showing that in this exposure scenario with environmentally relevant concentrations based on German pollution levels the threat to soil biota is minimal. However, in areas with higher concentrations of microplastics in the environment, these results can be interpreted as an early warning signal for more adverse effects. In conclusion, these findings provide new insights regarding the ecotoxicological effects of environmentally relevant concentrations of microplastics on soil organisms.