Organic compounds associated with microplastic pollutants in New Jersey, U.S.A. surface waters

B. Ravit; K. Cooper; B. Buckley; I. Yang; A. Deshpande; B. Ravit; K. Cooper; B. Buckley; I. Yang; A. Deshpande

doi:10.3934/environsci.2019.6.445

AIMS Environmental Science

2019, Volume 6, Issue 6: 445-459. doi: 10.3934/environsci.2019.6.445

Previous Article Next Article

Research article Special Issues

Organic compounds associated with microplastic pollutants in New Jersey, U.S.A. surface waters

1.
Department of Environmental Sciences, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
2.
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
3.
Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, USA
4.
NOAA Fisheries, J.J. Howard Sandy Hook Laboratories, Sandy Hook, NJ, USA

Received: 13 July 2019 Accepted: 23 October 2019 Published: 29 November 2019

Extensive manufacturing and ubiquitous use in every sector of today’s society has resulted in plastics being detected in all terrestrial and aquatic environments examined to date. However, the pervasiveness of small, potentially invisible, microplastics, their associated chemical additives, and organic compounds that absorb to plastic substrates are the topics of recent investigations. These micro- to nano- size plastic particles that are deliberately manufactured or were fragmented from larger plastic products are now ending up in food webs and worldwide environmental systems. Using a pyrolysis GC-MS method, plastic polymer composition was determined in samples obtained from freshwaters in urban New Jersey. Three polymers dominated the samples: polyethylene (43%), polypropylene (33%), and polystyrene (13%). The dominant polymers differed in each river. To identify Persistent Organic Pollutants sorbed to microplastic particles, headspace solid phase micro extraction coupled with gas chromatography/ion trap mass spectrometry was employed. In the majority of upriver sampling locations, Tentatively Identified Compounds were associated with both the microplastic and the water column fractions in roughly equal proportions. However, in the tidal portion of the Passaic River and in samples from Newark and Raritan Bays, the majority of organic compounds were associated with the microplastic fraction only. Based on a search of chemical databases, the possible source/use of 180 of the 223 compounds identified, whose total mass was 1 ng or more, was determined. Forty one percent of the identified compounds were natural substances, thirty five percent were identified as laboratory/research chemicals and seven percent were pharmaceutical or biomedical compounds. Twelve identified compounds are used for industrial purposes, including a plasticizer and an insecticide. Six compounds are used as cosmetic additives. The findings of this study illustrate the diversity of organic compounds associated with the presence of microplastics in aquatic media.
- polyethylene,
- polypropylene,
- polystyrene,
- persistent organic contaminants,
- Raritan River,
- Passaic River
Citation: B. Ravit, K. Cooper, B. Buckley, I. Yang, A. Deshpande. Organic compounds associated with microplastic pollutants in New Jersey, U.S.A. surface waters[J]. AIMS Environmental Science, 2019, 6(6): 445-459. doi: 10.3934/environsci.2019.6.445

Related Papers:

Abstract

Extensive manufacturing and ubiquitous use in every sector of today’s society has resulted in plastics being detected in all terrestrial and aquatic environments examined to date. However, the pervasiveness of small, potentially invisible, microplastics, their associated chemical additives, and organic compounds that absorb to plastic substrates are the topics of recent investigations. These micro- to nano- size plastic particles that are deliberately manufactured or were fragmented from larger plastic products are now ending up in food webs and worldwide environmental systems. Using a pyrolysis GC-MS method, plastic polymer composition was determined in samples obtained from freshwaters in urban New Jersey. Three polymers dominated the samples: polyethylene (43%), polypropylene (33%), and polystyrene (13%). The dominant polymers differed in each river. To identify Persistent Organic Pollutants sorbed to microplastic particles, headspace solid phase micro extraction coupled with gas chromatography/ion trap mass spectrometry was employed. In the majority of upriver sampling locations, Tentatively Identified Compounds were associated with both the microplastic and the water column fractions in roughly equal proportions. However, in the tidal portion of the Passaic River and in samples from Newark and Raritan Bays, the majority of organic compounds were associated with the microplastic fraction only. Based on a search of chemical databases, the possible source/use of 180 of the 223 compounds identified, whose total mass was 1 ng or more, was determined. Forty one percent of the identified compounds were natural substances, thirty five percent were identified as laboratory/research chemicals and seven percent were pharmaceutical or biomedical compounds. Twelve identified compounds are used for industrial purposes, including a plasticizer and an insecticide. Six compounds are used as cosmetic additives. The findings of this study illustrate the diversity of organic compounds associated with the presence of microplastics in aquatic media.

References

[1]	Auta HS, Emenike CU, Fauziah SH (2017) Distribution and importance of microplastics in the marine environment: A review of the sources, fate, effects, and potential solutions. Environ Int 102: 165-176. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2017.02.013
[2]	Horton AA, Walton A, Spurgeon DJ, et al. (2017) Review: Microplastics in freshwater and terrestrial systems: Evaluating the current understanding to identify knowledge gaps and future research priorities. Sci Total Environ 586: 127-141. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.01.190
[3]	Eerkes-Medrano D, Thomson RC, Aldridge DC (2015) Microplastics in freshwater systems: A review of the emerging threats, identification of knowledge gaps and prioritization of research needs. Water Res 75: 63-82. doi: 10.1016/j.watres.2015.02.012
[4]	Estahbanati S, Fahrenfeld NL (2016) Influence of wastewater treatment plant discharges on microplastic concentrations in surface water. Chemosphere 162: 277-284. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2016.07.083
[5]	Mason SA, Garneau D, Sutton R, et al. (2016) Microplastic pollution is widely detected in US municipal wastewater treatment plant effluent. Environ Pollut 218: 1045-1054. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2016.08.056
[6]	Ravit B, Cooper K, Moreno G, et al. (2017) Microplastics in urban New Jersey freshwaters: distribution, chemical identification, and biological effects. AIMS Environ Sci 4: 809-826. doi: 10.3934/environsci.2017.6.809
[7]	Carr SA (2017) Sources and dispersive modes of micro-fibers in the environment. Int Environ Assess Manage 13: 466-469. doi: 10.1002/ieam.1916
[8]	Dris R, Gasperi J, Rocher V, et al. (2015) Microplastic contamination in an urban area: a case study in Greater Paris. Environ Chem 12: 592-599. doi: 10.1071/EN14167
[9]	Rochman CM, Kross SM, Armstrong JB, et al. (2015) Scientific evidence supports a ban on microbeads. Environ Sci Technol 49: 10759-10761. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.5b03909
[10]	Rochman CM (2018) Microplastics research - from sink to source. Science 360: 28-29. doi: 10.1126/science.aar7734
[11]	Farrell P, Nelson K (2013) Trophic level transfer of microplastic: Mytilus edulis (L.) to Carcinus maenas (L.). Environ Pollut 177: 1-3.
[12]	Lusher AL, McHugh M, Tompson RC (2013) Occurrence of microplastics in the gastrointestinal track of pelagic and demersal fish from the English Channel. Mar Pollut Bull 67: 94-99. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.11.028
[13]	Sanchez W, Bender C, Porcher JM (2014) Wild gudgeons (Gobio gobio) from French rivers are contaminated by microplastics: Preliminary study and first evidence. Environ Res 128: 98-100. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2013.11.004
[14]	Browne MA, Dissanayake Galloway TS, Lowe DM, et al. (2008) Ingested microscopic plastic translocates to the circulatory system of the mussel, Mytilus edulis (L). Environ Sci Technol 42: 5026-5031. doi: 10.1021/es800249a
[15]	Van Cauwenberghe L, Janssen CR (2014) Microplastics in bivalves cultured for human consumption. Environ Pollut 193: 65-70. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2014.06.010
[16]	Leslie HA, Brandsma SH, van Velzen MJM, et al. (2017) Microplastics en route: Field measurements in the Dutch river delta and Amsterdam canals, wastewater treatment plants, North Sea sediments and biota. Environ Int 101: 133-142. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2017.01.018
[17]	Zubris KAV, Richards BK (2005) Synthetic fibers as an indicator of land application of sludge. Environ Pollut138: 201-211.
[18]	McCormick A, Hoellein TJ, Mason SA, et al. (2014) Microplastic is an abundant and distinct microbial habitat in an urban river. Environ Sci Technol 48: 11863-11871. doi: 10.1021/es503610r
[19]	Focazio MJ, Kolpin DW, Barnes KK, et al. (2008). A national reconnaissance for pharmaceuticals and other organic wastewater contaminants in the United States - II) Untreated drinking water sources. Sci Total Environ 402: 201-216. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2008.02.021
[20]	Rochman CM, Hoh E, Hentschel BT, et al. (2013). Long-term field measurements of sorption of organic contaminants to five types of plastic pellets: implications for plastic marine debris. Environ Sci Technol 47: 1646-1654.
[21]	Bakir A, Rowland SJ, Thompson RC (2014). Transport of persistent organic pollutants by microplastics in estuarine conditions. Est Coast Shelf Sci 140: 14-21. doi: 10.1016/j.ecss.2014.01.004
[22]	Buckley B, Stiles R (2005) Analytical determination of tentatively identified compounds in drinking water supplies to correspond with the USGS pharmaceutical work. Report to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
[23]	Murphy E, Buckley B, Lippencott L, et al. (2003) The characterization of tentatively identified compounds in water samples collected from public water systems in New Jersey. Environ Assess 2003: 1-37.
[24]	Wright SL, Thompson RC, Galloway TS (2013) The physical impacts of microplastics on marine organisms: A review. Environ Pollut 178: 483-492. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2013.02.031
[25]	Andrady AL (2011) Microplastics in the marine environment. Mar Pollut Bull 62: 1596-1605. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.05.030
[26]	Baldwin AK, Corsi SR, De Cicco LA, et al. Organic contaminants in Great Lakes tributaries: Prevalence and potential aquatic toxicity. Sci Total Environ 554: 42-52.

Reader Comments

Your name:*

Email:*
© 2019 the Author(s), licensee AIMS Press. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)