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Comparative study of the influence of linear and branched alkyltrichlorosilanes on the removal efficiency of polyethylene and polypropylene-based microplastic particles from water

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Abstract

Microplastics are a global environmental pollution. Due to this fact, new solutions are needed to reduce the amount in various aquatic environments. A new concept introduced by Herbort and Schuhen from the year 2016 describes the agglomeration of microplastics in water using silicon-based precursors. In the study presented here, alkyltrichlorosilanes with different linear and branched alkyl groups and a chain length between 1 and 18 carbon (C-) atoms are investigated for their suitability to fix microplastics (mixtures of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP)) and to form larger agglomerates. As the alkyl group has a major influence on the reaction rate and agglomeration behavior, we present here the extensive data collection of the evaluation of the best case. The removal efficiency is determined gravimetrically. The reaction behavior and the fixation process are characterized by hydrolysis kinetics. 29Si-MAS-NMR spectroscopy, IR spectroscopy, and thermogravimetry (TGA) are used to characterize the chemical composition of the agglomerates. Finally, the use of optical coherence tomography (OCT) allows the visualization of the formed agglomerates. The results show that the different alkyl groups have a strong impact on the suitability of the alkyltrichlorosilanes for the agglomeration, as they influence the hydrolysis and condensation kinetics in water and the affinity to the microplastics. Best suited for microplastic removal were intermediate chain length between 3 and 5 C-atoms.

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Funding

The research projects of Wasser 3.0 (www.wasserdreinull.de) are conducted by means of the financial support by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy through the provision of ZIM (Central Innovation Program for SME) project funds. The enterprise abcr GmbH (www.abcr.de) from Karlsruhe (GERMANY) is directly involved in the project as an industrial partner for the material science scale-up. Michael Sturm thanks the German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU) for the support with a PhD scholarship (reference number: 80018/174). The authors thank Prof. Dr. Gisela Guthausen from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) / Pro2NMR for her contribution.

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Correspondence to Katrin Schuhen.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Sturm, M.T., Herbort, A.F., Horn, H. et al. Comparative study of the influence of linear and branched alkyltrichlorosilanes on the removal efficiency of polyethylene and polypropylene-based microplastic particles from water. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27, 10888–10898 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-07712-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-07712-9

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