Research Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience, Coventry University, Ryton-on Dunsmore, CV8 3LG, United Kingdom.
Research Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience, Coventry University, Ryton-on Dunsmore, CV8 3LG, United Kingdom.
Environ Pollut. 2024 May 1;348:123792. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.123792. Epub 2024 Mar 20.
The production and consumption of disposable face masks (DFMs) increased intensely during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to a high amount of them being found in the terrestrial and aquatic environment. The main goal of this research study is to conduct a comparative evaluation of the water-leachability of microplastics (MPs) and chemical additives from various types of disposable surgical/medical face masks (MM DFMs) and filtering face pieces (FFPs). Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy was used for MPs analysis. Liquid Chromatography/High Resolution Mass Spectrometry was used to analyse analytes presented in the water-leachates of DFMs. FFPs released 3-4 times more microplastic particles compared to MM DFMs. The release of MPs into water from all tested DFMs without mechanical stress suggests potential MP contamination originating from the DFM production process. Our study for the first time identified bisphenol B (0.25-0.42 μg/L) and 1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate (163.9-115.0 μg/L) as leachables from MM DFMs. MPs in the water-leachates vary in size, with predominant particles <100 μm, and the release order from DFMs is MMIIR > MMII > FFP3>FFP2>MMI. The main type of microplastics identified in the water leachates of the investigated face masks was polypropylene, accounting for 93-97% for MM DFMs and 82-83% for FFPs. Other polymers such as polyethylene, polycarbonate, polyester/polyethylene terephthalate, polyamide/Nylon, polyvinylchloride, and ethylene-propylene copolymer were also identified, but in smaller amounts. FFPs released a wider variety and a higher percentage (17-18%) of other polymers compared to MM DFMs (3-7%). Fragments and fibres were identified in all water-leachate samples, and fragments, particularly debris of polypropylene fibres, were the most common MP morphotype. The findings in this study are important in contributing additional data to develop science-based policy recommendations on the health and environmental impacts of MPs and associated chemical additives originated from DFMs.
一次性口罩（DFM）在 COVID-19 大流行期间的产量和消耗量剧增，导致大量口罩出现在陆地和水生环境中。本研究的主要目的是对各种类型的一次性医用外科/医疗口罩（MM-DFM）和过滤面罩（FFP）中的微塑料（MP）和化学添加剂的水浸出性进行比较评估。傅里叶变换红外光谱用于 MPs 分析。液相色谱/高分辨率质谱用于分析 DFM 水浸出物中的分析物。FFP 释放的微塑料颗粒是 MM-DFM 的 3-4 倍。所有测试的 DFM 在没有机械压力的情况下将 MPs 释放到水中，这表明可能源自 DFM 生产过程的 MPs 污染。我们的研究首次从 MM-DFM 中鉴定出双酚 B（0.25-0.42μg/L）和 1,4-双（2-乙基己基）磺基琥珀酸酯（163.9-115.0μg/L）为浸出物。水中浸出物中的 MPs 大小不一，主要颗粒 <100μm，从 DFM 释放的顺序为 MMIRR>MMII>FFP3>FFP2>MMI。在所研究的口罩的水浸出物中鉴定出的主要类型的微塑料是聚丙烯，占 MM-DFM 的 93-97%，占 FFP 的 82-83%。还鉴定出其他聚合物，如聚乙烯、聚碳酸酯、聚酯/聚对苯二甲酸乙二醇酯、聚酰胺/尼龙、聚氯乙烯和乙烯-丙烯共聚物，但数量较少。与 MM-DFM（3-7%）相比，FFP 释放的其他聚合物种类更多，比例更高（17-18%）。所有水浸出样品中均鉴定出碎片和纤维，尤其是聚丙烯纤维的碎片，是最常见的 MPs 形态。本研究的结果为开发基于科学的政策建议提供了额外的数据，这些建议涉及 MPs 及其源自 DFM 的相关化学添加剂对健康和环境的影响。
