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Comparison between discarded facemask and common plastic waste on microbial colonization and physiochemical properties during aging in seawater
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Researchers found that discarded surgical facemasks in seawater hosted more diverse microbial communities than conventional plastic waste, with higher degradation-related enzyme activity and more pronounced physicochemical changes during aging, raising concerns about their environmental impact.
Facemasks are indispensable for preventing the spread of COVID-19. However, improper disposal of discarded facemasks has led to their contamination in the marine environment. To understand the environmental risk of this emerging plastic pollution, it's important to clarify the features that distinguish discarded facemasks from common plastic waste during aging. This study compared the microbial colonization, degradation-related enzymes, and physicochemical properties among surgical masks, polystyrene cups, polycarbonate bottles, and polyethylene terephthalate bottles in their aging processes in natural seawater. Compared to the other plastic wastes, surgical masks were colonized by the most diverse microorganisms, reaching 1521 unique prokaryotic OTUs after 21-day exposure in seawater. Moreover, the activity of eukaryotic enzymes associated with plastic degradation was 80-fold higher than that in seawater, indicating that the colonized eukaryotes would be the major microorganisms degrading the surgical masks. Meanwhile, the nano-sized defects (depth between 8 and 61 nm) would evolve into cracks of bigger sizes and result in the breakage of the microfibers and releasing microplastics into the ocean. Overall, our study demonstrated a distinctive plastisphere occurred in surgical masks from both microbial and physiochemical aspects. This work provides new insights for assessing the potential risk of plastic pollution caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Bacterial pathogens associated with the plastisphere of surgical face masks and their dispersion potential in the coastal marine environment
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Researchers deployed face masks in coastal seawater for two months and used advanced DNA sequencing to identify bacterial pathogens colonizing the plastic surfaces. The study found that face masks selectively enriched certain putative pathogens rarely found in surrounding seawater and released considerable microfibers during degradation, suggesting that pandemic-related mask waste in oceans may serve as vectors for transporting harmful bacteria across marine environments.
Microbial community and dynamic changes of extracellular polymeric substances in relation to plastisphere of disposable surgical masks in natural aquatic environment
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Researchers found that disposable surgical masks discarded into freshwater environments rapidly develop biofilms with distinct microbial communities in each layer, with potential pathogens enriched specifically in the middle layer, suggesting that pandemic-related mask waste poses underappreciated ecological and public health risks in aquatic systems.
An investigation into the aging mechanism of disposable face masks and the interaction between different influencing factors
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Researchers found that a single disposable face mask can release between 39,000 and 938,000 microplastic particles as it breaks down over three months under environmental conditions like UV light and saltwater. The aging masks also released heavy metals and absorbed other pollutants like antibiotics from their surroundings. This highlights that improperly discarded face masks are a significant and growing source of microplastic and chemical pollution.
Release study of microplastic fibres and heavy metals from disposable surgical face masks in aqueous medium: the effect of physio-chemical factors and shear forces
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Researchers studied the release of microplastic fibers and heavy metals from disposable surgical face masks in water under various conditions. They found that physical factors like agitation and UV exposure significantly increased the rate of microplastic and metal release from the masks. The findings raise concerns about the environmental impact of discarded face masks as they degrade in aquatic systems.
The Release Potential of Microplastics from Face Masks into the Aquatic Environment
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This study examined the release of microplastics from new and naturally aged surgical and FFP2 face masks exposed to environmental conditions and water, finding that both types released particles, particularly after weathering. Improper disposal of face masks poses a growing source of microplastic contamination in aquatic environments.
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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.