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Interactive Effect of Urbanization and Flood in Modulating Microplastic Pollution in Rivers

SSRN, ISSN: 1556-5068
2022
  • 5
    Citations
  • 244
    Usage
  • 5
    Captures
  • 0
    Mentions
  • 0
    Social Media
Metric Options:   Counts1 Year3 Year

Metrics Details

  • Citations
    5
    • Citation Indexes
      5
  • Usage
    244
    • Abstract Views
      213
    • Downloads
      31
  • Captures
    5

Article Description

Freshwater ecosystems play an important role in transporting and accumulating microplastics. Spatial and temporal variability in microplastic pollution can create critical spots and moment of elevated pollution, however their interactive effects are still poorly understood. The aim of this study was to assess the interaction between urbanisation and flood episodes on river microplastic pollution. Water surface was sampled in two sites of the Garonne River, upstream and downstream a large urban area during two flood episodes. Samples were chemically digested to facilitate particles isolation and microplastics (700 µm – 5 mm) were characterized through infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR). Microplastic concentration increased by 5 to 8 fold during flood episodes, driven by river discharge. This increase was more important in the downstream site. During the flood there was an overall increase of larger particles in water surface, but only in the downstream site the microplastic distribution in colors and polymeric composition significantly changed. Principal component analysis of infrared spectra from polyethylene microplastics revealed that the main variance in the spectral region corresponded to hydroxyl and carbonyl groups. The carbonyl content in microplastics was significantly higher for particles collected during the flood, likely indicating a higher oxidation state. Urbanisation modulates freshwater microplastic pollution during floods, and changes in microplastic physicochemical profile should be further integrated within toxicity studies to evaluate risks potentially elevated to animal and human health.

Bibliographic Details

Aline Reis de Carvalho; Louna Riem-Galliano; Alexandra ter Halle; Julien Cucherousset

Elsevier BV

Multidisciplinary; freshwater; polymer; oxidation; ATR-FTIR; multivariate analysis

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