Identification and characterization of extracted microplastics from agricultural soil near industrial area: FTIR and X‐ray diffraction method

Abstract

AbstractMicroplastics have been found in large quantities in agricultural soil and now become a major global issue. Different types of microplastic have adverse effects on agricultural soil. The most widely used method for the extraction of microplastics in agricultural soil is the density floatation method by using saturated NaCl solution. This method includes the pre‐digestion of soil samples with H2O2 to remove all the organic matter present in the soil. Different types of microplastic particles were extracted and identified by using ATR‐FTIR viz polypropylene, polybutylene tetrapthalate, polyethylene, polystyrene, and polyethylene tetrapthalate. The crystalline nature of extracted microplastic was checked by employing XRD analytical technique. Floatation with higher density saturated sodium chloride (NaCl) solution recovered approximately 80% MPs from soil. Floatation methods were found to be effective for extracting microplastics from soils.