College of Textile and Clothing, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, China.
Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Environmental Science, Nanjing, 210036, China.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2019 Oct;26(28):29497-29501. doi: 10.1007/s11356-019-06265-w. Epub 2019 Aug 23.
Microfibers are a major component of microplastics and have been found nearly everywhere, especially in marine and freshwater habitats around the world. Therefore, microfibers have gained considerable attention in environmental science research. However, there is still no clear consensus on a definition that can encompass all necessary properties to describe microfibers as emerging pollutants. Therefore, we propose a definition for debate by taking the related descriptions of microplastics and textile fibers as references. Moreover, the potential sources from the perspectives of textile engineering, including production, use, care, and end-of-life disposal of fibrous materials, are discussed. For further investigation of microfiber pollution, the gap between current knowledge and major microfiber pollution concerns must be bridged.
微纤维是微塑料的主要组成部分，几乎无处不在，尤其是在世界各地的海洋和淡水生境中。因此，微纤维在环境科学研究中受到了相当大的关注。然而，对于一个能够包含所有必要特性的定义，以将微纤维描述为新兴污染物，目前仍没有明确的共识。因此，我们提出了一个定义供讨论，该定义参考了微塑料和纺织纤维的相关描述。此外，还从纺织工程的角度讨论了潜在的来源，包括纤维材料的生产、使用、护理和生命周期处置。为了进一步研究微纤维污染，必须弥合当前知识与主要微纤维污染关注点之间的差距。
