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Microplastics and Nanoplastics in the Aquatic Environment: Contamination, Determination and Interaction with Other Contaminants
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This review gathers information on microplastic and nanoplastic contamination in aquatic environments, examining their detection methods, environmental persistence, and interactions with other contaminants including their capacity to adsorb and release chemical compounds.
Background: After more than half a century since the increase in the dumping of plastics in the oceans and other bodies of water, the damage caused by these products and their fractions has been verified. Its presence compromises the quality of the environment due to its prolonged permanence in the habitat and potential for the adsorption of substances and release of chemical compounds to the environment responsible for the durability of the plastic. Aims: This paper aims to gather information about the source, characterization, and interactions of micro- and nanoplastic in the environment and provide current material for those curious about this pollution. Methods: This review was conducted searching for papers on micro and nanoplastics on Science Direct, Springer, and Elsevier databases using keywords such as “microplastic”, “nanoplastic”, “sources”, “contamination”, “instruments”, “analysis,” and “ocean”. This review used only published works and comprise the last seven years of research on the topic from the date the review was initiated. The work is structured in the definition of micro and nanoplastics, main sources, levels of contamination, adsorption processes, and characterization techniques. Results: Degradation drives the main role in producing micro- and nanoplastic. Studies have reported interactions between microplastic and hydrophobic and hydrophilic compounds and demonstrated that microplastics can concentrate inorganic and organic compounds in several orders of magnitude, acting as vectors for co-pollutants in the environment. Discussion: Factors such as exposure time, pH, salinity, temperature, and adsorbate concentration directly affect MP-pollutant selection processes. The adsorption process might happen in presence of micro- and nanoplastic since organic pollutants have a high affinity with solid or particulate materials. Methodologies and quantification vary significantly among studies making it difficult to synthesize data. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that numerous techniques are being modified to characterize micro- and nanoparticles. However, standardizing analysis methodologies has proven challenging due to the nature of these particles and their nanometer-scale size.
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