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Nanoplastics and ultrafine microplastic in the Dutch Wadden Sea – The hidden plastics debris?
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Researchers applied a novel analytical method to detect nanoplastics and ultrafine microplastics smaller than 10 micrometers in Dutch Wadden Sea sediments, revealing a previously hidden fraction of plastic debris that conventional methods miss.
Plastic pollution in the marine environment has been identified as a global problem; different polymer types and fragment sizes have been detected across all marine regions, from sea ice to the equator and the surface to the deep sea. However, quantification of marine plastics debris in the size range of nanoplastics (<1 μm) and ultrafine microplastics (<10 μm) is not constrained, because such minuscule particles are challenging to measure. In this work, we applied a novel analytical assay using Thermal Desorption - Proton Transfer Reaction - Mass Spectrometry (TD-PTR-MS), which is suitable to detect and identify plastics in the nanogram range. From two stations in the Wadden Sea (the Netherlands), we measured nanoplastics directly from seawater aliquots, and from filters with different mesh sizes. Our results show the presence of Polystyrene (PS) and Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) nanopalstics as well as ultrafine microplastics in the Wadden Sea water column. The mass concentration of PS nanoplastics was 4.2 μg/L on average, indicating a substantial contribution of nanoplastics to the Wadden Sea's total plastic budget.
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Nanoplastics in the Dutch Wadden Sea
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Researchers investigated nanoplastic particles in the Dutch Wadden Sea and found that the smallest plastic fragments, below 100 micrometers, make up the vast majority of plastic particles, far outnumbering larger pieces. The study highlights the importance of measuring nanoscale plastic pollution in coastal systems, which remains technically challenging and undersampled.
Nano-plastics and their analytical characterisation and fate in the marine environment: From source to sea
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Researchers reviewed the sources, environmental fate, organism interactions, and analytical detection methods for nano-sized plastic polymers in the marine environment, concluding that nanoplastics pose the greatest ecological risk among plastic size fractions and that standardized analytical protocols for nanoplastic characterization are urgently needed.
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Global plastic production has grown from under 10 million tons in the 1960s to over 300 million tons by the 2010s, driving the transition of marine pollution from visible macroplastics down to nanoscale particles that permeate every ocean environment. This trajectory underscores the urgent need for production controls and improved waste management before nanoplastic contamination becomes irreversible across marine ecosystems.
Marine microplastics - Method development for detection of plastic particles from sea water down to 10 μm
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Researchers developed and tested methods to detect plastic particles down to 10 micrometers from seawater samples, addressing a key technical challenge in microplastic research. Better analytical methods that can detect smaller particles are essential for understanding the full extent of microplastic pollution and its ecological effects.
We estimate up to 14 million tonnes of microplastics lie on the seafloor. It’s worse than we thought
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Deep-sea sediment sampling estimates up to 14 million tonnes of microplastics have accumulated on the ocean floor, roughly 35 times the estimated weight of plastic floating on the ocean surface. This finding fundamentally changes the understanding of where plastic pollution resides and suggests the long-term ecological burden on marine ecosystems is far greater than surface measurements have indicated.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.