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Comment on egusphere-2025-605
Summary
Researchers examined the atmospheric settling behavior of commercially available glitter particles and synthetic fibers with complex non-spherical shapes to improve models of large microplastic transport and deposition. Experimental measurements of gravitational settling velocity for glitters (0.1-3 mm diameter) and fibers (1.2-5 mm length) provided data largely absent from prior literature on aerodynamic microplastic behavior.
Abstract. The atmosphere plays a major role in the dispersion of microplastics in the environment. The atmospheric transport of large microplastics is strongly influenced by their settling behavior, which depends on their physical properties, including size and shape. However, experimental data on the settling behavior of commercially available microplastics with complex, nonspherical shapes in air are rare. Here we present experiments on the gravitational settling velocity of commercially available glitters (nominal diameters between 0.1 and 3 mm) and fibers (lengths between 1.2 and 5 mm). We observed that glitters and fibers settle up to 74 % and 78 % slower compared to volume-equivalent spheres, respectively. The atmospheric transport of fibers has been studied previously; however, there are no studies on the atmospheric transport potential of glitters. Therefore, we used an atmospheric transport model constrained by our experimental results to assess the transport potential of glitters. Our results reveal that glitters exhibit transport distances 12–261 % greater than volume-equivalent spheres, highlighting their elevated atmospheric transport potential. As a result, the environmental impact of glitter particles, especially following their use in entertainment events, warrants attention and mitigation.
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The atmospheric settling of commercially sold microplastics
Researchers measured the gravitational settling velocities of commercially available glitter microplastics (0.1-3 mm nominal diameter) and synthetic fibers (1.2-5 mm length) in air, finding that non-spherical shapes cause complex settling behaviors that deviate substantially from spherical particle models used in atmospheric transport models.
Comment on egusphere-2025-605
Researchers examined the atmospheric transport of microplastics, focusing on how their settling behavior — determined by physical properties including size and shape — governs the dispersion of large microplastic particles through the atmosphere and their deposition across environments.
Reply on RC1
Researchers measured the gravitational settling velocities of commercially available glitter particles and synthetic fibres in air to better characterise atmospheric microplastic transport. They found glitters and fibres settled up to 74% and 78% slower than volume-equivalent spheres, respectively, indicating that non-spherical shapes substantially extend atmospheric residence times.
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Reply on RC2
Researchers investigated the atmospheric settling behaviour of non-spherical microplastics, including glitters and fibres with nominal diameters and lengths ranging from 0.1 to 5 mm, to improve transport model accuracy. Experimental data showed settling velocities up to 78% lower than spherical equivalents, underscoring the need to account for particle morphology in atmospheric dispersion models.