Department of Environmental Engineering, Mersin University, Mersin, Turkey.
Department of Environmental Engineering, Nigde Ömer Halisdemir University, Niğde, Turkey.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2021 Sep;28(34):47517-47527. doi: 10.1007/s11356-021-14099-8. Epub 2021 Apr 24.
A possible source of microplastics has started to be released into nature because of the single-use face masks that protect us against the spread of COVID-19 and are being thrown onto the streets and into seas and nature. This study aims to estimate the amount of face mask use during the COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey, thereby expressing our concerns about waste management and plastic pollution and calling on appropriate solid waste management policies and governments to take the necessary measures to formulate their strategies at all levels. In this context, the number of masks in an area of 1 km in 3 different cities was determined theoretically and experimentally. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) were also used to evaluate plastic polymer characteristics of the single-use face mask. It was determined that the three cities produce roughly 10 tons of face masks in a day. With the increasing use of single-use plastics, the impact of face masks on microplastic pollution is of great concern. Although studies on the recovery of disposable masks continue, the level is insufficient. Therefore, studies to be carried out on technologies that will enable the repeated use of masks are important.
由于一次性口罩能够保护我们免受 COVID-19 的传播，因此已开始将其作为一种可能的微塑料来源释放到自然界中，而这些口罩正被丢弃在街道上、海洋中和自然界中。本研究旨在估计 COVID-19 大流行期间土耳其的口罩使用量，从而表达我们对废物管理和塑料污染的关注，并呼吁采取适当的固体废物管理政策，促使各国政府在各级制定必要措施以制定相关战略。在这方面，从理论和实验上确定了 3 个不同城市中 1 公里区域内的口罩数量。还使用傅里叶变换红外光谱（FT-IR）和扫描电子显微镜（SEM）来评估一次性口罩的塑料聚合物特性。结果表明，这三个城市每天大约生产 10 吨口罩。随着一次性塑料使用量的增加，口罩对面料微塑料污染的影响引起了极大关注。尽管有关一次性口罩回收的研究仍在继续，但水平仍然不足。因此，开展能够使口罩重复使用的技术研究非常重要。
