Method Development for Separation and Analysis of Tire and Road Wear Particles from Roadside Soil Samples

Abstract

A comprehensive understanding of tire and road wear particles (TRWPs) and their detection and quantification in soils is still challenged by the lack of well-set standardized methods, inherent technological inconsistencies, and generalized protocols. Our protocol includes soil sampling, size separation, and organic matter removal by using hydrogen peroxide followed by density separation and analysis. In this context, roadside soil samples from different sites in Kansas and Ohio, USA, were collected and analyzed. Tire cryogrinds analogous to TRWPs were used to evaluate various density separation media, and collected particles more than 1 mm in size were then subjected to infrared spectroscopy (IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX) to confirm TRWP presence. Particles smaller than 1 mm were Soxhlet extracted, followed by gas chromatography−mass spectrometry (GC−MS) to validate the presence of tirerelated intermediates. SEM-EDX validated the presence of elemental combinations (S + Zn/Na) ± (Al, Ca, Mg, K, Si) attributed to tires. Ketones, carboxylic acids, epoxies, cyclohexane, and benzothiazole sulfenamide (BTS) intermediates were the most probable tire-related intermediates observed in the roadside soil samples. Thus, this simple, widely applicable, cost-effective sample preparation protocol for TRWP analysis can assist TRWP research advancement in terrestrial environments.

Environmental Occurrence and Toxicity of 6PPD Quinone, an Emerging Tire Rubber-Derived Chemical: A Review

“…Although TRWPs, as one of the largest sources of microplastics, are the main contributors to terrestrial microplastics (45%), 45 there has been insufficient research on the presence of 6PPDQ in soil. In a study investigating the occurrence of rubber-derived quinones in air, water, and soil in Hong Kong, China, 6PPDQ was detected in roadside soil samples.…”

Enabling Green Manufacture of Polymer Products via Vegetable Oil Epoxides

“…Vegetable oils are indispensable in polymeric coatings in terms of alkyds, polyester aides, polyether amides, polyurethanes, epoxies, and polyols majorly used in the coatings industry. Further, vegetable oils such as castor, tung, corn, soybean, and linseed have widely been reported as comonomers in various reported research works − and for varied applications like coatings, plasticizers, and elastomers. ,− However, the focus of this review is to explore the challenges, progress, and opportunities with vegetable oil epoxide applications exclusively. That is, the regular use of vegetable oil as such, or with other functionalization, to be used in polymer products are not part of the scope of this review.…”

The Road to Sustainable Tire Materials: Current State-of-the-Art and Future Prospectives

“…Out of the automobile industry’s share of 40% global pollution, tire contributes to a hefty 20–30%. , Tire manufacturing also contributes to carbon dioxide emissions and the depletion of petrochemical resources . Several studies also show an ubiquitous presence of the much-discussed tire and road wear particles (TRWP) in the air, water, and soil. − TRWP quantification studies show that 1 000 000 ton/yr of TRWP has been reported in the U.S. alone. , Further, several degradation studies of tire particles show that tire leachate from the additives can be present in the environment after prolonged exposure. − Moreover, TRWP is shown to have environmental implications like human health risk on the liver and kidneys and respiratory irritation, and acute toxicity on aquatic life such as the coho-salmon species. − Thus, there is a primal need for sustainable formulation by incorporating more environmentally friendly materials. Any material that meets the general product requirements without compromising the future generation’s ability to meet their needs is referred to as a sustainable material .…”