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Characteristics of soil microplastics and ecological risks in the Qilian Mountains region, Northeast Tibetan Plateau

Environmental Pollution 2024 13 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 50 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.

Xi Luo, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Xi Luo, Yulan Zhang, Xi Luo, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Shichang Kang, Qiangqiang Kang, Qiangqiang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Shichang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Tanguang Gao, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Tanguang Gao, Shichang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Shichang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Shichang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Tanguang Gao, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Shichang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Tanguang Gao, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Shichang Kang, Xi Luo, Xi Luo, Xi Luo, Xi Luo, Shichang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Zhaoqing Wang Yulan Zhang, Xi Luo, Yulan Zhang, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Junming Guo, Tanguang Gao, Yujiao Zhao, Shichang Kang, Yulan Zhang, Qiangqiang Kang, Qiangqiang Kang, Xi Luo, Xi Luo, Xi Luo, Xi Luo, Xi Luo, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Junming Guo, Yujiao Zhao, Xi Luo, Junming Guo, Tanguang Gao, Xi Luo, Junming Guo, Xi Luo, Junming Guo, Junming Guo, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Junming Guo, Xi Luo, Zhaoqing Wang Qiangqiang Kang, Shuncun Zhang, Tanguang Gao, Shuncun Zhang, Yulan Zhang, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Tanguang Gao, Zhaoqing Wang

Summary

Researchers analyzed soil microplastics across different vegetation types in the Qilian Mountains of the Northeast Tibetan Plateau using laser infrared spectroscopy. They found the highest microplastic abundance in shrub soils, with fragments dominating across all vegetation types and polyamide and polyethylene terephthalate as the most common polymers. While basic pollution indices showed manageable levels, hazard-based assessments indicated that specific polymer types present medium to high ecological risks in this remote mountain ecosystem.

Polymers

PA PE PET

Microplastics (MPs) pollution has become a vital global environmental issue. However, comprehensive understanding of the ecological risks of MPs in soils of Northeast Tibetan Plateau still requires further study. In this study, we used the Agilent 8700 Laser Direct Infrared (LDIR) spectroscopy to analyze the characteristics of 10-1000 μm MPs in soils of different vegetation types throughout the Qilian Mountains basin, and to comprehensively explore the ecological risks of MPs in various ecological environments. The results indicate that MPs abundance is highest in soil of shrub areas (26,369 ± 32,147 items kg-dry weight (dw)), followed by woodland (22,215 ± 22,544 items kg-dw), desert (17,769 ± 9,040 items kg-dw), grassland (16,462 ± 12,872 items kg-dw), and forest (15,662 ± 13,857 items kg-dw). MPs in soils of different vegetation types show similar physical and chemical characteristics, with the shape dominated by fragments (93%-96%), followed by fibers and a few beads, with dominant sizes of 10-30 μm (63%-76%), and polymers dominated by polyamide (PA) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Additionally, the environmental risks posed by the fundamental characteristics of MPs have been quantified through the Pollution Load Index (PLI), Pollution Hazard Index (PHI), and Potential Ecological Risk Index (PERI) models. According to the PLI assessment, the current levels of MPs in the environment have not yet imposed significant burdens on the ecosystem. However, the results of PHI and PERI indicate a higher risk of MPs pollution in the Qilian Mountains. This study offers vital information for MPs pollution in the whole Qilian Mountains regions and their potential environmental risks in remote areas' soil.

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