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Aggregation and Aggregate Strength of Microscale Plastic Particles in the Presence of Natural Organic Matter: Effects of Ionic Valence

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Abstract

Considering the recent plastic loads in water bodies we studied the aggregation, charging, and aggregate strength of polyethylene microsphere (PEM) particles in the presence of natural organic matter (NOM) as a function of KCl and CaCl2 concentrations. We used the Suwannee river humic acid (SRHA) as NOM and PEM as microplastics. The aggregation was triggered in the presence of CaCl2 solutions more effectively than KCl due to the divalent bridging and strong electrostatic attraction between Ca2+ and SRHA as well as between PEM particles. We found that the maximum aggregate strength around 1.87 nN in the presence of 100 mg/L SRHA at 0.5 M CaCl2 solution. The aggregate strength of PEM particles in the KCl solution was lower than that of CaCl2 solution, manifesting the more effective bridging flocculation and divalent bridging due to the Ca2+ ions.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are thankful for the support of the research received no external funding JSPS KAKENHI (19H03070 and 16H06382). The authors are also thankful to University of Tsukuba, Japan and University of Chittagong, Bangladesh.

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  1. Department of Soil Science, University of Chittagong, 4331, Chittagong, Bangladesh

    Azizul Hakim

  2. Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennoudai, Ibaraki, 305-8572, Tsukuba, Japan

    Motoyoshi Kobayashi

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Hakim, A., Kobayashi, M. Aggregation and Aggregate Strength of Microscale Plastic Particles in the Presence of Natural Organic Matter: Effects of Ionic Valence. J Polym Environ 29, 1921–1929 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10924-020-01985-4

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