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Novel methodology to isolate microplastics from vegetal-rich samples
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Researchers compared five organic digestion methods and a novel density separation approach for extracting microplastics from algae- and plant-rich samples, finding that density separation using 96% ethanol outperformed all digestion methods in efficiency, safety, and simplicity. The authors recommend the ethanol density separation protocol as a standard method for vegetal-rich environmental matrices.
Microplastics are small plastic particles, globally distributed throughout the oceans. To properly study them, all the methodologies for their sampling, extraction, and measurement should be standardized. For heterogeneous samples containing sediments, animal tissues and zooplankton, several procedures have been described. However, definitive methodologies for samples, rich in algae and plant material, have not yet been developed. The aim of this study was to find the best extraction protocol for vegetal-rich samples by comparing the efficacies of five previously described digestion methods, and a novel density separation method. A protocol using 96% ethanol for density separation was better than the five digestion methods tested, even better than using HO digestion. As it was the most efficient, simple, safe and inexpensive method for isolating microplastics from vegetal rich samples, we recommend it as a standard separation method.
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