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Sample decomposition to determine microplastics in parts of mullets
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Researchers developed an optimized potassium hydroxide digestion method for extracting microplastics from different tissues of mullet fish, including meat, skin, and the digestive system. Different tissues required different digestion conditions to achieve effective extraction without destroying the plastic particles. The method improves the accuracy of microplastic detection in fish commonly consumed by people.
In this study, a 10% KOH solution was used to decompose the meat, skin, and digestive system of mullets. The factors in each experiment are as follows: 1) VKOH:mmeat is 10/1 (mL·g–1), incubated at 25 °C for 72 h; VKOH:mskin is 15/1 (mL·g–1), incubated at 40 °C for 72 h; VKOH:mdigestive system is 20/1 (mL·g–1), incubated at 40 °C for 72 h. The actual sample images display microplastics in the surveyed parts of the mullets with different shapes and colours.
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