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Hydrophobic filter sampling for simultaneous determination of airborne plasticizers and microplastics in indoor air by Py-GC/MS
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Scientists developed a more sensitive way to detect tiny plastic particles (microplastics) and phthalates—chemicals used to make plastics flexible that have been linked to hormone disruption—floating in the air we breathe indoors. Testing real indoor air, they found measurable levels of both plastic particles and phthalates, confirming that these substances are a routine part of the air in our homes and offices. This matters because it gives researchers a better tool to track indoor air pollution from plastics, which is a first step toward understanding how much we're actually exposed to and what it might mean for our health.
Airborne microplastics, an emerging environmental concern, have attracted global attention due to their ubiquitous occurrence in indoor environments. In this work, a method for the simultaneous determination of airborne microplastics and phthalate esters (PAEs) in indoor air was developed by double-shot pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) combined with filter sampling. The commercial glass fiber filters were modified via reaction with silylation reagent. The modified filters had significantly high enrichment factors for PAE additives, ranging from 6,921 to 150,260. Subsequently, the modified filters were employed to enrich airborne PP and PE, as well as 10 PAE additives from indoor air. A quantitative method based on selected ions was established and validated. Both PAEs and microplastics exhibited good linearity over their respective linearity ranges with correlation coefficients more than 0.98. LOQs were 0.03-1.0 ng/m for 10 PAEs and 0.6-1.7 ng/m for microplastics. This proposed approach was applied to quantify PP and PE microplastics and their associated PAE additives in real indoor air samples. The obtained results showed that various trace-level airborne PAEs existed in indoor air. Of all the measured PAEs, di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (>33.3 ng/m), dibutyl phthalate (>7.89 ng/m) and diisobutyl phthalate (0.98-10.42 ng/m) were the predominant congeners, and the concentrations of the remaining PAEs were below 1.82 ng/m³. The detected concentrations in indoor air samples ranged from 2.78 to 5.00 ng/m³ for PP and 88.10 to 184.67 ng/m³ for PE, respectively. This approach provides a practical reference for the monitoring of trace-level pollutants in indoor air.
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