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Determination of micro/nanoplastics on the surface of polystyrene lunch boxes by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry combined with efficient magnetic capture by Fe3O4 nanoparticles
Summary
Scientists developed a sensitive new method using magnetic nanoparticles to detect tiny plastic fragments—both microplastics and even smaller nanoplastics—shedding from polystyrene lunch boxes (the foam-like takeout containers many of us use). They found that these boxes release measurable amounts of plastic particles, including some that can migrate into food, meaning people using these containers may be unknowingly ingesting small amounts of plastic with their meals. This matters because as plastic particles get smaller, they may be more easily absorbed by our bodies, and better detection tools like this one help researchers understand our actual exposure
In this study, 1 μm glass fiber membranes were used to enrich polystyrene microplastics (PS MPs), and then hydrophilic iron oxide nanoparticle (n-FeO) was used to capture the residual polystyrene nanoplastics (PS NPs), primarily through hydrogen bonding, coordination, and electrostatic interactions. MPs on membranes and NPs captured by n-FeO were respectively determined by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS). The method was verified by adding PS MNPs standard to ultrapure water. The detection limit of this method was 0.16 μg/cup for PS MPs and 0.03 μg/cup for PS NPs. The absolute recovery rates of MPs and NPs were 99 ± 2% and 89 ± 3%, respectively. The test results of three batches of PS lunch boxes showed that the content of PS MPs attached on surfaces was 6.79-12.30 μg/box, and the content of PS NPs was 0.51-0.96 μg/box. The migrated PS MPs and PS NPs were 4.71-5.19 μg/box and 1.27-1.40 μg/box respectively.