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Seasonal ice encapsulation: the pivotal influence on microplastic transport and fate in cold regions
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This study examines how seasonal ice encapsulation influences the transport and fate of microplastics in cold regions, noting that the small size and stability of microplastics allow them to persist even in remote environments including the Arctic and Antarctic. The authors analyze how freeze-thaw cycles and ice dynamics play a pivotal role in controlling microplastic distribution in these ecosystems.
Owing to their small size and stability, MPs have been found to be present in different media all over the world, even in the most remote regions such as the Arctic and Antarctic.
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Entrainment and Enrichment of Microplastics in Ice Formation Processes: Implications for the Transport of Microplastics in Cold Regions
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Researchers investigated how microplastic properties and environmental conditions affect their entrainment and enrichment during ice formation, finding that sea ice selectively concentrates microplastics and can serve as both a temporary sink and a transport medium in cold regions.
Revealing the Freezing-Induced Alteration in Microplastic Behavior and Its Implication for the Microplastics Released from Seasonal Ice
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Researchers revealed how freeze-thaw cycling alters microplastic behavior in environmental matrices, finding that freezing changes particle aggregation, surface properties, and transport dynamics with implications for polar and seasonally frozen environments.
Distribution of microplastics between ice and water in aquatic systems: The influence of particle properties, salinity and freshwater characteristics
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Laboratory freezing experiments showed that ice formation in both saltwater and freshwater captures microplastics, but the extent varies significantly with water chemistry, particle shape, and suspended solids — fiber-shaped particles were far less likely to be trapped in ice than fragments. In cold climates, ice can act as a seasonal reservoir that concentrates microplastics and then releases them in large pulses when it melts, making spring snowmelt a potentially significant delivery event for aquatic ecosystems. These findings are relevant for understanding microplastic dynamics in Arctic, subarctic, and temperate freshwater systems.
Modeling the Accumulation and Transport of Microplastics by Sea Ice
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Researchers used numerical modeling to examine how positively and neutrally buoyant microplastics accumulate in and are transported by Arctic and Southern Ocean sea ice, finding that sea ice acts as a significant seasonal reservoir and redistribution mechanism for microplastic pollution in polar regions.
Arctic sea ice is an important temporal sink and means of transport for microplastic
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This study showed that Arctic sea ice acts as a significant temporary reservoir for microplastics, trapping particles that are then released when ice melts, making sea ice both a sink and a transport mechanism for microplastic pollution.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.