Issue 2, 2023

Emerging investigator series: microplastic-based leachate formation under UV irradiation: the extent, characteristics, and mechanisms

Abstract

Microplastics in the aquatic system are among the many inevitable consequences of plastic pollution, which has cascading environmental and public health impacts. Our study aimed at analyzing surface interactions and leachate production of six microplastics under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. Leachate production was analyzed for the dissolved organic content (DOC), UV254, and fluorescence through excitation emission (EEM) to determine the kinetics and mechanisms involved in the release of organic matter by UV irradiation. The results suggested there was a clear trend of organic matter being released from the surface of the six microplastics caused by UV irradiation based on DOC, UV254 absorbance, and EEM intensity increasing with time. Polystyrene had the greatest and fastest increase in DOC concentrations, followed by the resin coated polystyrene. Experiments conducted at different temperatures indicated the endothermic nature of these leaching mechanisms. The differences in leachate formation for different polymers were attributed to their chemical makeup and their potency to interact with UV. The aged microplastic samples were analyzed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Raman, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), to determine the surface changes with respect to leachate formation. Results indicated that all microplastics had increasing carbonyl indices when aged by UV with polystyrene being the greatest. These findings affirm that the leachate formation is an interfacial interaction and could be a significant source of organic compound influx to natural waters due to the extremely abundant occurrence of microplastics and their large surface areas.

Graphical abstract: Emerging investigator series: microplastic-based leachate formation under UV irradiation: the extent, characteristics, and mechanisms

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
04 iyn 2022
Accepted
08 dek 2022
First published
27 dek 2022

Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol., 2023,9, 363-374

Author version available

Emerging investigator series: microplastic-based leachate formation under UV irradiation: the extent, characteristics, and mechanisms

A. Collins, M. Ateia, K. Bhagat, T. Ohno, F. Perreault and O. Apul, Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol., 2023, 9, 363 DOI: 10.1039/D2EW00423B

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements