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Overlooked Emission of Polystyrene Nanoplastics through Sea Spray Aerosol
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Sea spray doesn't just carry salt into the air—it also launches tiny plastic particles (nanoplastics) from ocean water into the atmosphere we breathe, according to this lab-based study. Researchers estimate the North Atlantic alone sends about 135,000 tons of nanoplastic into the air each year this way, meaning airborne plastic exposure may be more significant than previously thought. This matters because it suggests another route by which plastic particles could enter our lungs and bodies, beyond the food and water sources already studied.
The emission of nanoplastics through sea spray aerosol (SSA) from the ocean to the atmosphere has remained uncertain in different environments. The present study was intended to profile size-fractionated emission factors (EFs) of 100 nm polystyrene (PS) via SSA under different scenarios with surfactants and estimate the emission amounts of nano-PS from the North Atlantic. The EF of 100 nm PS in the synthetic seawater was 1700 ± 170. Fulvic acid reduced the emission of 100 nm PS, while Triton X-100 exhibited concentration-dependent effects on its release. The EFs in the synthetic seawater showed a unimodal peak at 1.0–1.8 μm. Fulvic acid and Triton X-100 shifted the peak size for EFs to 3.2–5.6 μm. The annual emission amount of nano-PS through SSA from the North Atlantic to the atmosphere was 135 000 t, accounting for 2% of the total budget in the mixed layer of the North Atlantic. The percentages would change to 0.8 and 2.8% with the presence of 0.1 mg L –1 fulvic acid and 1 μg L –1 Triton X-100, respectively. The present study documented the relative importance of emission of nanoplastics through SSA to their fate in the ocean and atmosphere.
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This study found that microplastics and nanoplastics in ocean water can become airborne through sea spray and be inhaled by people near coastlines. Smaller plastic particles were launched into the air more efficiently than larger ones, and the researchers estimated that people living near the coast could inhale thousands of plastic particles per year through this route. This reveals a previously underappreciated pathway for human exposure to microplastics beyond eating and drinking.
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Researchers conducted lab experiments to measure how microplastics and nanoplastics in the ocean get launched into the atmosphere through sea spray bubbles. They found that plastic particles smaller than 10 micrometers can become airborne this way, with smaller and less dense particles being emitted more easily. This reveals an important but underappreciated pathway by which ocean plastic pollution can reach inland areas and be inhaled by people.
Emission of Microplastics via Sea Spray Aerosol: A Generalizable Enrichment Framework for Marine Constituents
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Ocean waves and sea foam can fling tiny plastic particles from seawater into the air we breathe, and this study shows that how much gets released depends on the plastic's size, shape, and even whether it's been weathered or coated in ocean grime. This matters because it means microplastics floating out at sea aren't staying put, they can travel through the air, potentially reaching our lungs and remote environments far from the coast, making this an important piece of the puzzle for understanding our real-world exposure to plastic pollution.
Micro- and nanoplastics transfer from seawater to the atmosphere through aerosolization under controlled laboratory conditions
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Using a laboratory wave-action tank, researchers demonstrated that polystyrene beads of 0.5-10 microns are efficiently aerosolized from seawater into spray aerosols, with enrichment factors of up to 19-fold for 0.5 micron particles, confirming sea spray as a vector for micro- and nanoplastic atmospheric transport.
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Researchers quantified the transfer of microplastics from seawater to sea spray aerosols in laboratory experiments, finding enrichment factors up to 24,000-fold depending on particle size. Their bottom-up emission estimate suggests the oceans emit 24 quintillion microplastic pieces per year but are unlikely to be a significant source of atmospheric microplastics relative to land-based sources.
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