Dittmar Stefan, Weyrauch Steffen, Reemtsma Thorsten, Eisentraut Paul, Altmann Korinna, Ruhl Aki S, Jekel Martin
Chair of Water Quality Control, Technische Universität Berlin, Straße des 17. Juni 135, 10623 Berlin, Germany.
GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Wischhofstraße 1-3, 24148 Kiel, Germany.
Environ Sci Technol. 2025 Jul 8;59(26):13434-13446. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.5c04165. Epub 2025 Jun 18.
The terminal settling velocity is considered the most critical parameter determining the transport of tire and road wear particles (TRWP) in aquatic environments. Nonetheless, no respective empirical data has been reported so far. In this study, particle samples from a road simulator and a highway tunnel were investigated with a validated imaging method. Different density and size fractions of both samples were measured separately, acquiring sizes and settling velocities of more than 30,000 individual particles. In addition, tire marker polymers were analyzed for each fraction via thermal extraction desorption-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Finally, the acquired particle data was combined according to the fractions' estimated tire contents in order to deduce detailed probability distributions of particle size and settling velocity for the actual TRWP from both samples. Weighted by TRWP-incorporated tire mass, median diameters of 54 and 44 μm as well as median settling velocities of 0.65 and 0.22 mm/s were found for TRWP from the road simulator and highway tunnel, respectively. This study thus provides the first ever empirical data on TRWP settling velocities in water, which can be highly valuable input for modeling the environmental transport of TRWP and for dimensioning TRWP retention systems.
终端沉降速度被认为是决定轮胎和道路磨损颗粒（TRWP）在水生环境中输运的最关键参数。尽管如此，目前尚未有相关的经验数据报道。在本研究中，采用一种经过验证的成像方法对来自道路模拟器和公路隧道的颗粒样本进行了研究。分别测量了两个样本不同密度和尺寸级分的情况，获取了超过30000个单个颗粒的尺寸和沉降速度。此外，通过热萃取解吸-气相色谱/质谱法对每个级分的轮胎标记聚合物进行了分析。最后，根据各组分估计的轮胎含量对获取的颗粒数据进行合并，以推导出两个样本中实际TRWP的粒径和沉降速度的详细概率分布。以包含TRWP的轮胎质量为权重，道路模拟器和公路隧道中TRWP的中位直径分别为54和44μm，中位沉降速度分别为0.65和0.22mm/s。因此，本研究首次提供了TRWP在水中沉降速度的经验数据，这对于模拟TRWP的环境输运以及确定TRWP截留系统的尺寸可能具有极高的价值。
