Suspended sediments mediate microplastic sedimentation in unidirectional flows
dc.contributor.author
dc.date.accessioned
2023-10-25T10:05:02Z
dc.date.available
2023-10-25T10:05:02Z
dc.date.issued
2023-09-10
dc.identifier.issn
0048-9697
dc.identifier.uri
dc.description.abstract
Microplastic particles (MP) are an emerging contaminant threatening many aquatic systems. Because of the sharp increase in plastic manufacture, the concentration of MP in natural ecosystems has grown dramatically. While it is known that when MP enter aquatic ecosystems they are transported and dispersed via different mechanisms (currents, waves, turbulence), the processes involved are still poorly understood. In the current study, the transport of MP by a unidirectional flow has been investigated in a laboratory flume. MP enter the system through a plume that can (or not) have suspended sediment. The interaction between MP and sediment was studied for three different MP particle types (Polyamide (PA) and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) fragments, and Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) fibers), and four different sediment concentrations (0 g/l, 15 g/l, 30 g/l and 45 g/l). In all cases, sediment increased the vertical transport of MP to the bottom. The greater the sediment concentration, the greater the downward flux of MP. Sediment particles scavenged PA fragments downwards at the highest rate, followed by PET fibers and finally PVC fragments. These results indicate that a sediment particle-laden plume carrying MP may induce a differential settling of MP as they are advected. The scavenging of MP by sediments may result in sedimentation segregated patterns, with MP being found at shorter distances than expected for the case without sediment, therefore increasing the presence of MP near their contaminant sources
dc.description.sponsorship
This work was supported by the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad of the Spanish Government through Grant PID2021-123860OB-I00
Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Elsevier
dc.format.mimetype
application/pdf
dc.language.iso
eng
dc.publisher
Elsevier
dc.relation
PID2021-123860OB-I00
dc.relation.isformatof
Reproducció digital del document publicat a: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164363
dc.relation.ispartof
Science of The Total Environment, 2023, vol.890, p. 164363
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Articles publicats (D-F)
dc.rights
Attribution 4.0 International
dc.rights.uri
dc.subject
dc.title
Suspended sediments mediate microplastic sedimentation in unidirectional flows
dc.type
info:eu-repo/semantics/article
dc.rights.accessRights
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.relation.projectID
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/AEI/Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y de Innovación 2021-2023/PID2021-123860OB-I00/ES/ACUMULACION DE MPS EN HUMEDALES: MECANISMOS DE TRANSPORTE Y ZONIFICACIÓN DE LOS MICROPLASTICOS/
dc.type.version
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
dc.identifier.doi
dc.contributor.funder
dc.type.peerreviewed
peer-reviewed
dc.relation.FundingProgramme
dc.relation.ProjectAcronym
dc.identifier.eissn
1879-1026