Investigation of microplastics contamination in drinking water of a German city

Weber, Felix; Kerpen, Jutta; Wolff, Sebastian; Langer, René; Eschweiler, Vanessa

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.143421

Cited by 87 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Contrarily, another study applying Raman micro spectroscopy (≥10 µm) found no evidence for MP in tap water, but only for pigment particles [11]. This highlights once again the need to identify risk factors for MP entry in drinking water.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…LOD = limit of detection. 0.9 ± 0.8 PEST 62%, PA 24%, PVC 14% n/a n/a n/a n/a Kirstein et al [9] (blanks subtracted) µFTIR (and Pyr-GC/MS) n/a n/a 171 ± 398 PA 0-100%, PEST 0-100%, acrylic 0-29% n/a n/a n/a n/a Weber et al [11] µRaman n/a n/a 0 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a Oßmann et al [6,35] n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 28 ± 29 PEST 41%, PE 35%…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The latter may get trapped in filter meshes and cannot be removed unless applying mechanical force potentially, resulting in particle fragmentation. Weber et al [11] determined recovery rates of 55 ± 14% and 70 ± 15% for spherical PE particles (sizes 22−27 µm and 45−53 µm, respectively) placed on stainless steel sieves with a diameter of 80 mm. The disk-shaped sieves may be easier to rinse off than the cartridge filters used in this study, which can explain the higher recovery rate.…”

Section: Quality Assurance and Quality Control 311 Blanks And Lodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Drinking water is one of the most frequently chosen research subjects to be investigated, as it is a relatively easy-to-handle substance from which MP can often be isolated simply by filtering it. In drinking water from ground water sources, Mintenig et al [8] found a maximum of 7 MP m −3 (lower detection limit 20 µm), while Weber et al [11] did not detect any MP (≥10 µm). In contrast, Schymanski et al [7] and Oßmann et al [6] observed high numbers of MP in bottled water; they both investigated mineral water in different packaging materials.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

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From the Well to the Bottle: Identifying Sources of Microplastics in Mineral Water

Weißer

Beer

Hufnagl

et al. 2021

Water

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Microplastics (MP) have been detected in bottled mineral water across the world. Because only few MP particles have been reported in ground water-sourced drinking water, it is suspected that MP enter the water during bottle cleaning and filling. However, until today, MP entry paths were not revealed. For the first time, this study provides findings of MP from the well to the bottle including the bottle washing process. At four mineral water bottlers, five sample types were taken along the process: raw and deferrized water samples were filtered in situ; clean bottles were sampled right after they left the bottle washer and after filling and capping. Caustic cleaning solutions were sampled from bottle washers and MP particles isolated through enzymatic and chemical treatments. The samples were analyzed for eleven synthetic and natural polymer particles ≥11 µm with Fourier-transform infrared imaging and random decision forests. MP were present in all steps of mineral water bottling, with a sharp increase from <1 MP L−1 to 317 ± 257 MP L−1 attributed to bottle capping. As 81% of MP resembled the PE-based cap sealing material, abrasion from the sealings was identified as the main entry path for MP into bottled mineral water.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Quality Assurance and Quality Control 311 Blanks And Lodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

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From the Well to the Bottle: Identifying Sources of Microplastics in Mineral Water

Weißer

Beer

Hufnagl

et al. 2021

Water

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“…This can, e.g., be done with syringe membrane filters (with 0.2 μm pore size, e.g., made of cellulose acetate [32]). Instead of syringe membrane filters, the chemicals can be filtered through a polycarbonate (PC) filter (with a pore size of 1.2 μm) as proposed by Weber et al [52]. Alternatively, 1.2 μm and 0.7 μm glass-fiber filters can be applied for the filtration of the reagents before use, as reported by Johnson et al and Kirstein et al [53,54], respectively.…”

Section: Measures To Avoid Sample Contaminationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of microplastics in drinking water and other clean water samples with micro-Raman and micro-infrared spectroscopy: minimum requirements and best practice guidelines

Oßmann²,

et al. 2021

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Microplastics are a widespread contaminant found not only in various natural habitats but also in drinking waters. With spectroscopic methods, the polymer type, number, size, and size distribution as well as the shape of microplastic particles in waters can be determined, which is of great relevance to toxicological studies. Methods used in studies so far show a huge diversity regarding experimental setups and often a lack of certain quality assurance aspects. To overcome these problems, this critical review and consensus paper of 12 European analytical laboratories and institutions, dealing with microplastic particle identification and quantification with spectroscopic methods, gives guidance toward harmonized microplastic particle analysis in clean waters. The aims of this paper are to (i) improve the reliability of microplastic analysis, (ii) facilitate and improve the planning of sample preparation and microplastic detection, and (iii) provide a better understanding regarding the evaluation of already existing studies. With these aims, we hope to make an important step toward harmonization of microplastic particle analysis in clean water samples and, thus, allow the comparability of results obtained in different studies by using similar or harmonized methods. Clean water samples, for the purpose of this paper, are considered to comprise all water samples with low matrix content, in particular drinking, tap, and bottled water, but also other water types such as clean freshwater. Graphical abstract

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