Characteristics, fate, and sources of microplastics contaminant in surface water and sediments of river water

Abstract

Although developing countries are huge producers of plastic debris, few studies on MPs in freshwater systems, a major contributor to oceans, have been done. In this investigation, we estimated the abundance, shape, size, and potential sources of MPs in river water and sediments taken from the freshwater of the Subarnarekha and Kharkai rivers in Jamshedpur. Four types of MPs were identified among the analyzed data: fragments, films, foams, and fibers. These MPs were examined using a stereomicroscope and their polymer composition was identified using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. The quantitative assessment of our study revealed a mean abundance of MPs 9.55 ± 4.87 items/L (average ± SD, n = 9) in water and 270.88 ± 105.89 items/kg (average ± SD, n = 9) in sediment samples. The morphological distribution of MP particles revealed that fibers account of 44.2 % of MPs particles, followed by film (24.4 %), fragments (20.9 %), and pellets/foam (10.5 %) in water. Fiber accounts 48.3 % of total MPs shape followed by fragments (20.6 %), foam/pellets (16.4 %) and film (14.7 %) in sediments. According to the MP size distribution, 84.9 % of the MPs were between <125 μm and 1000 μm in water, while 94.0 % of the particles were between 125 μm and 5000 μm. The black color MPs accounted for 27. 0 % in water and 20.0 % in sediments, followed by blue (24.0 %), and white (19.0 %) in water and sediments, respectively. The most abundant polymer composition found was 30.0 % and 28.2 % of polyester in water and sediment samples respectively, which was followed by polypropylene 37.7 %, polyvinyl chloride 36.2 %, polyethylene 29.7 %, polystyrene 25.1 %, and polyamide 13.1 % in water and sediments. To reduce microplastic pollution, focus on mitigation of plastic waste, improving waste management, and implementing practical solutions.