In the last decade, growing numbers of researchers have studied plastic pollution, one of the world's most pressing environmental hazards. They have made progress but still face challenges, such as the comparability of results, especially with regard to microplastic particles.
There is no standard sample collection and analysis methodology, for example. Most studies present conclusions based on numbers of particles as if they were environmentally equivalent regardless of size, volume, mass or surface area.
An article by three Brazilian researchers published in Environmental Science and Pollution Research aims to contribute to progress in this field by proposing a novel perspective on particle morphology.
Using a theoretical approach, the authors argue that including morphological attributes in the analysis can reveal significant differences between samples of microplastic particles, demonstrating that samples initially considered equivalent because they contain the same number of particles actually have different environmental impacts because of variations in particle size and shape.
Microplastic particles (MPs) are artificial polymers with a length of between 0.001 and 5.0 millimeters, or 1-5,000 micrometers (μm), and are found in all kinds of environment. Few studies of pollution by MPs have been published in Brazil, especially regarding inland aquatic areas.