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Simulation of seasonal transport of microplastics and influencing factors in the China Seas based on the ROMS model
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Researchers used ocean circulation modeling to simulate how microplastics are transported across the China Seas during different seasons. The study found that microplastic pathways and distributions vary markedly with seasonal circulation patterns, with the longest transport distances occurring in summer when particles from the Pearl River could travel over 1,375 kilometers, while in autumn and winter more than three-quarters of microplastics beached along the south-central Chinese coast.
Elucidating the mechanisms governing microplastic transport and spatial distribution in offshore waters is essential to microplastic control. However, current research on microplastic transport in the China Seas is largely restricted to small-scale investigations, which do not provide a comprehensive result. Therefore, in this study, we used the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) combined with the Lagrangian Transport (LTRANS v.2) model to investigate how microplastics are transported around the China Seas during different seasons and under climatological river discharge. Our findings showed that the microplastic pathways and spatial distributions exhibit marked seasonal variations controlled by circulation patterns in the China Seas, river discharge values, and the characteristics of the microplastic materials. Floating microplastics exhibited the longest transport distance in summer, when microplastics from the Pearl River could be transported up to 1375.8 km through the Tokara and Tsushima straits. The heavy pollution areas in summer were located in the South Yellow Sea and East China Sea, mainly resulting from the contribution of the Yangtze River (>66%). In autumn and winter, more than three-quarters of the microplastics beached off the south-central Chinese coast. In addition, simulating the vertical velocity of the water prolonged the time required for microplastics to reach the open ocean, thereby reducing the amount of microplastics entering the Pacific Ocean by 6% compared to the simulation without the vertical velocity of the water in summer. Microplastics with higher densities were generally transported shorter distances. The transmission distances of PET and PS were two orders of magnitude smaller than that of PE. This study enhances knowledge of the sources and fates of offshore microplastics and provides scientific support for offshore microplastic control.
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Simulation of seasonal transport of microplastics and influencing factors inthe China Seas based on the ROMS model
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers used the Regional Ocean Modeling System combined with the LTRANS Lagrangian transport model to simulate seasonal microplastic transport throughout the China Seas, finding that circulation patterns, river discharge, and particle properties drive marked seasonal variations in microplastic pathways and spatial distribution.
Large-scale Lagrangian Transport of Microplastics Derived from Four Major Rivers in the South China Sea Analyzed with a Climatological HYCOM-ROMS Model
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This Japanese-language study used a climate hydrodynamic model with Lagrangian particle tracking to simulate how microplastics from four major rivers enter the South China Sea and disperse. Researchers found seasonal monsoon patterns control transport, with particles from southern Chinese rivers reaching the East China Sea in spring and summer, suggesting the South China Sea is a significant source of microplastic contamination in Japanese coastal waters.
Medium-Term Oceanic Transport of River-Derived Microplastics in the South China Sea Analyzed with a Particle Tracking Model
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Researchers used 3D Lagrangian particle tracking simulations to model how microplastics discharged from four major rivers spread through the South China Sea over months. The study showed that particles can travel far from their sources and that the ocean floor receives substantial long-term deposition of river-derived microplastics.
Numerical simulation research of the transportation and distribution characteristics on sea surface of the microplastic released continuously for 12 years from China's coastal cities
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Using ocean current modeling, this study simulated where microplastics released from Chinese coastal cities over 12 years actually end up. The majority (80%) wash back ashore or remain in nearby marginal seas, about 18% are carried into the Pacific via the Kuroshio Current, and a small fraction reaches Southeast Asia. The results show that proximity to source matters enormously for coastal microplastic accumulation and that China's coastal emissions create a regional, rather than purely global, pollution signature.
Three-dimensional Basin-scale Oceanic Transport of River-derived Microplastics in the South China Sea
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This Japanese-language oceanography study used high-resolution 3D ocean circulation reanalysis data to track river-derived microplastic particles in the South China Sea using Lagrangian neutral particle simulations. Researchers found that most river-origin particles remained in the South China Sea for extended periods, with strong monsoon-driven seasonal variability in dispersion patterns and evidence of particles descending the continental shelf slope to potentially contaminate deep sea environments. The study provides important insights into basin-scale microplastic transport dynamics in a semi-enclosed tropical sea.
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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.