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InorganicAdditives Induce More Small-Sized MicroplasticsReleasing from Medical Face Masks
Summary
Researchers compared medical face masks with and without calcium carbonate (CaCO3) inorganic additives to determine how these additives affect microplastic release characteristics. They found that the presence of inorganic additives promoted the generation of smaller-sized microplastic particles, which are of greater concern for human inhalation and environmental persistence.
Although previous studies have extensively explored the release of microplastics from masks, the specific influence of inorganic additives on microplastic emissions has remained unidentified. Herein, we performed a comparative analysis of medical face masks (MFMs) with calcium carbonate (CaCO3) additives against those devoid of CaCO3 to understand their roles in microplastic release. Briefly, our investigation employed surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) to examine micro- and nanoplastic release, while the stereoscopic characterization of mixing states of additives in microplastic was accomplished through a simulated Raman scattering (SRS). We also pioneered a three-dimensional imaging (3D imaging) method for investigating the internal aging of plastic using SRS, which clearly revealed the link between inorganic additives inside polymers and photoaging. We found that inorganic additives substantially accelerate the photoaging of the plastic materials through multiple pathways and induce more small-sized microplastics. Follow-up radical quenching experiments confirmed carbonate radicals as the main cause of this phenomenon. Our research exposes the hazardous potential of inorganic additives in masks to amplify the emission of microplastics.