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Article ? AI-assigned paper type based on the abstract. Classification may not be perfect — flag errors using the feedback button. Tier 2 ? Original research — experimental, observational, or case-control study. Direct primary evidence. Detection Methods Environmental Sources Marine & Wildlife Sign in to save

Vertical distribution of microplastics in a river water column using an innovative sampling method

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) 2022
Gabriel Pasquier, Périne Doyen, Guillaume Veillet, Florence Viudes, Rachid Amara

Summary

An aquatic drone was adapted to simultaneously sample microplastics from the water surface and subsurface layers in a river, revealing that concentrations differed significantly between depths. Buoyant microplastics accumulated at the surface while denser particles were more evenly distributed through the water column. The use of vertical profiling tools addresses a major gap in understanding microplastic behavior in rivers, most of which have only been sampled at the surface.

Study Type Environmental

The microplastics (MPs) pollution has been widely documented in all type of aquatic environment. However, most of the studies focus on the MPs contamination in the surface water and there is a lack of knowledge about contamination in the water column. In the present study, we adapted an aquatic drone to sample MPs both in the water surface (0 – 25 cm) and subsurface (25-50 cm). In a previous study, the aquatic drone has been shown to be more accurate for sampling MPs than the Manta net. The samples of surface and subsurface water were collected in a river with the aquatic drone, while an in-situ pump was used to sample water near the bottom (2 to 3 m depth) of the river. MPs concentrations (n.L-1) and their characteristics (size, morphology, color, shape and polymer nature) were determined and compared between the three sampling compartments. All of the water compartments sampled were contaminated. Our results showed that subsurface water could be as contaminated as the surface water. In terms of shape, fibers and film were a majority on the water surface while fragments were found in greater proportion in subsurface water. This study demonstrates that sampling only the water surface could result in bias for assessing the MPs contamination in aquatic environment. Also see: https://micro2022.sciencesconf.org/426655/document

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