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Quantification of selected microplastics in Australian urban road dust
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Researchers quantified microplastics in road dust along an urban-to-rural transect in Southeast Queensland, Australia, using Accelerated Solvent Extraction followed by pyrolysis GC-MS to measure six polymer types across five size fractions. Concentrations ranged from 0.5 mg/g in rural areas to 6 mg/g in Brisbane city, with PVC and PET dominating and the sub-250 µm fraction containing the majority of mass, and vehicle volume explaining 63% of the variance in microplastic concentration.
Microplastics (1 - 5000 µm) are pervasive in every compartment of our environment. However, little is understood regarding the concentration and size distribution of microplastics in road dust, and how they change in relation to human activity. Within road dust, microplastics move through the environment via atmospheric transportation and stormwater run-off into waterways. Human exposure pathways to road dust include dermal contact, inhalation and ingestion. In this study, road dust along an urban to rural transect within South-East Queensland, Australia was analysed using Accelerated Solvent Extraction followed by pyrolysis Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (Pyr-GC/MS). Polypropylene, polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, poly (methyl methacrylate) and polyethylene were quantified. Microplastic concentrations ranged from 0.5 mg/g (rural site) to 6 mg/g (Brisbane city), consisting primarily of polyvinyl chloride (29%) and polyethylene terephthalate (29%). Size fractionation (¡ 250 µm, 250-500 µm, 500-1000 µm, 1000-2000 µm and 2000-5000 µm) established that the ¡ 250 µm size fraction contained the majority of microplastics by mass (mg/g). Microplastic concentrations in road dust demonstrated a significant relationship with the volume of vehicles (r2 = 0.63), suggesting traffic, as a proxy for human movement, is associated with increased microplastic concentrations in the built environment. Also see: https://micro2022.sciencesconf.org/426553/document
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Quantification of selected microplastics in Australian urban road dust
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Researchers measured microplastic concentrations in road dust along an urban-to-rural corridor in southeast Queensland, Australia, and found levels ranging from about 0.5 mg/g in rural areas to 6 mg/g in Brisbane's city center. The smallest size fraction (under 250 micrometers) contained the most microplastic by mass, and polyvinyl chloride and polyethylene terephthalate were the most common types. Microplastic levels correlated significantly with traffic volume, suggesting vehicle activity is a major contributor to microplastic pollution in urban environments.
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