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Trapping of Microplastics in Halocline and Turbidity Layers of the Semi-enclosed Baltic Sea

Frontiers in Marine Science 2021 50 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 45 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.

Qian Zhou, Jie Yang, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Chen Tu, Chen Tu Jie Yang, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Jie Yang, Chen Tu Chen Tu, Chen Tu Chen Tu Qian Zhou, Chen Tu Jie Yang, Qian Zhou, Jie Yang, Chen Tu Chen Tu Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu Chen Tu Chen Tu Chen Tu Chen Tu Chen Tu Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu Chen Tu Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Chen Tu, Chuancheng Fu, Chuancheng Fu, Yuan Li, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Joanna J Waniek, Qian Zhou, Joanna J Waniek, Joanna J Waniek, Joanna J Waniek, Jie Yang, Jie Yang, Chen Tu, Chen Tu Qian Zhou, Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu Qian Zhou, Joanna J Waniek, Joanna J Waniek, Joanna J Waniek, Jie Yang, Chen Tu Jie Yang, Jie Yang, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Chuancheng Fu, Chuancheng Fu, Chen Tu, Chuancheng Fu, Chen Tu Yuan Li, Jie Yang, Jie Yang, Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu Jie Yang, Chen Tu, Jie Yang, Chen Tu Jie Yang, Chen Tu Jie Yang, Jie Yang, Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Joanna J Waniek, Qian Zhou, Qian Zhou, Chuancheng Fu, Chuancheng Fu, Chuancheng Fu, Chen Tu, Joanna J Waniek, Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu Chen Tu Chen Tu, Qian Zhou, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu Jie Yang, Chen Tu Chen Tu Chen Tu Jie Yang, Chen Tu Chen Tu, Chuancheng Fu, Chen Tu, Chen Tu Chen Tu Chen Tu, Chen Tu Chen Tu, Chen Tu Qian Zhou, Chen Tu Qian Zhou, Chen Tu, Joanna J Waniek, Chen Tu, Joanna J Waniek, Jie Yang, Chen Tu, Chen Tu

Summary

Microplastic vertical distribution in the semi-enclosed Baltic Sea was investigated, finding that the distinct salinity-driven halocline trapped microplastics at density transition layers, demonstrating that water column stratification is a significant factor controlling microplastic depth profiles in enclosed seas.

Microplastic pollution in semi-enclosed seas is gaining attention since microplastics are more likely to accumulate there. However, research on the vertical distribution of microplastics and impact factors is still limited. In this study, we focus on the Baltic Sea, which has distinguished salinity stratification, and we assume that the resulting strong density stratification (halocline) can influence the vertical distribution of microplastics in the water column. Therefore, we analyzed the vertical abundance distribution, the composition, and the sizes of microplastics (27.3–5,000.0 μm) in the Baltic Sea. The results showed that microplastics comprising fibers, fragments, and films occurred throughout the water column at an abundance of 1.1–27.7 items L −1 . The abundance of microplastics (3.2–27.7 items L −1 ) at haloclines was significantly higher than those at other water depths except the near surfaces ( p &lt; 0.05), contributing 24.1–53.2% of the microplastics in the whole water column. Small microplastics (&lt;100 μm) were more likely to accumulate in the water layers above halocline. Moreover, the current with high turbidity might be another carrier of microplastics in the near-bottom water layer due to its strong correlation with microplastics abundance. This study provides valuable evidence for the accumulation trend of microplastics in water columns and its influencing factors in the semi-enclosed marginal sea. Further research on the vertical distribution of microplastics under the control of multiple factors should be conducted in the future.

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