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Investigating the Sorption of Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products on High-Density Polyethylene and Polypropylene Microplastics
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Researchers investigated the sorption behavior of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) on high-density polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics in aquatic systems. They found that microplastics adsorb PPCPs to concentrations orders of magnitude higher than the surrounding water, demonstrating that plastic particles act as concentrators and potential vectors for pharmaceutical contaminants in aquatic environments. The study adds to evidence that microplastics amplify co-contaminant exposure risks for aquatic organisms.
The term “microplastics” refers to plastic particles with a diameter of 5mm or less. Microplastics are capable of sorbing organic contaminants to concentrations magnitudes higher than the surrounding water. One such contaminants class is a group of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). As of now, very little information is known about the sorption behavior of PPCPs on microplastics; therefore, to better understand the interaction between PPCPs and microplastics, their sorption behavior must be studied. The goal of this project is to explore and evaluate the sorption behavior of polar and ionizable PPCPs onto microplastics. The PPCPs in this study were: diphenhydramine, an antihistamine, venlafaxine hydrochloride, an antidepressant, and N, N-diethylmeta-toluamide (DEET), which is an insect repellant.
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