Plastic debris in the open ocean
Andrés Cózar,Fidel Echevarría,J. Ignacio González-Gordillo,Xabier Irigoien,Bárbara Úbeda,Santiago Hernández-León,Alvaro T. Palma,Sandra Navarro,Juan García-de-Lomas,Andrea Ruiz,María L. Fernández-de-Puelles,Carlos M. Duarte +11 more
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TLDR
Using data from the Malaspina 2010 circumnavigation, regional surveys, and previously published reports, this work shows a worldwide distribution of plastic on the surface of the open ocean, mostly accumulating in the convergence zones of each of the five subtropical gyres with comparable density.Abstract:
There is a rising concern regarding the accumulation of floating plastic debris in the open ocean. However, the magnitude and the fate of this pollution are still open questions. Using data from the Malaspina 2010 circumnavigation, regional surveys, and previously published reports, we show a worldwide distribution of plastic on the surface of the open ocean, mostly accumulating in the convergence zones of each of the five subtropical gyres with comparable density. However, the global load of plastic on the open ocean surface was estimated to be on the order of tens of thousands of tons, far less than expected. Our observations of the size distribution of floating plastic debris point at important size-selective sinks removing millimeter-sized fragments of floating plastic on a large scale. This sink may involve a combination of fast nano-fragmentation of the microplastic into particles of microns or smaller, their transference to the ocean interior by food webs and ballasting processes, and processes yet to be discovered. Resolving the fate of the missing plastic debris is of fundamental importance to determine the nature and significance of the impacts of plastic pollution in the ocean.read more
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Polystyrene nanoparticles affect the innate immune system of the Antarctic sea urchin Sterechinus neumayeri
Elisa Bergami,A. Krupinski Emerenciano,Marcelo González-Aravena,César A. Cárdenas,P. Hernández,José Roberto Machado Cunha da Silva,Ilaria Corsi +6 more
TL;DR: It is demonstrated that PS NPs with different surface charges constitute a challenge for S. neumayeri immune cells, suggesting a threshold in coelomocytes defence ability against PS-NH2.
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Microplastics and nanoplastics in global food webs: A bibliometric analysis (2009–2019)
TL;DR: Keyword analysis reveals the shift of research hotspots from investigations on M/NPs absorbed by various organisms in the ecosystems to studies on the trophic transfer of M/ NPs and sorbed contaminants in the food webs and their associated adverse impacts.
Posted ContentDOI
First evidence of microplastics in Antarctic snow
Alexandra Rose Aves,Laura E. Revell,Sally Gaw,Helena Ruffell,Alex Schuddeboom,Ngaire E. Wotherspoon,Michelle A. LaRue,Adrian McDonald +7 more
TL;DR: In this article , the authors used micro-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (μFTIR) to identify microplastics in all Antarctic snow samples at an average concentration of 29 particles L−1, with fibres the most common morphotype and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) the most commonly polymer.
Journal ArticleDOI
Effect of Physical Characteristics and Hydrodynamic Conditions on Transport and Deposition of Microplastics in Riverine Ecosystem
Rakesh Kumar,Prabhakar Sharma,Anurag Verma,Prakash Kumar Jha,P. M. Singh,Pankaj Gupta,Ravish Chandra,P. V. Vara Prasad +7 more
TL;DR: In this article, a comprehensive review on physical processes involved in microplastics transport in riverine ecosystems is presented, highlighting how appropriately empirical transport models explain vertical and horizontal distribution of microplastic.
Journal ArticleDOI
Sinking velocity of sub-millimeter microplastic
TL;DR: A model is presented that predicts terminal sinking velocity as a function of particle size and particle excess density over the fluid and improves the predictive power of this model requires further experiments with a range of particle characteristics.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
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