Occurrence, Temporal Variability, and Loads of Poly(vinyl chloride) in the Rhine and Moselle.

ABSTRACT: There is an urgent need to improve the knowledge about occurrence and behavior of microplastics in the aquatic environment. The aim of this study was to determine the temporal variability and spatial distribution of poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) in the larger German rivers Rhine and Moselle. Monitoring campaigns using a continuous flow centrifuge (sampling of suspended matter in a particle size range of 1 mm-1 μm) revealed a strong dependence of PVC concentrations of up to 3.3 μg/L on the discharge. It could be shown that PVC microplastic concentrations have strong correlations with suspended matter (correlation coefficients >0.94 with p-values <0.05). PVC microplastics and suspended matter were thus evidenced to show an identical temporal behavior in the Rhine River and Moselle. Furth

SUBMITTER: Kamp J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12288088 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature