Comparative Assessment of Microplastics in Surface Waters and Sediments of the Vaal River, South Africa: Abundance, Composition, and Sources.

ABSTRACT: We extracted microplastics from surface water and sediment samples from the Vaal River in Johannesburg, South Africa. Average abundances of 0.61 ± 0.57 particles/ m3 and 4.6 × 10²  ± 2.8 × 10²  particles/kg dry weight were recorded for water and sediment samples, respectively. In both sediment and water samples, more than 80% of microplastics were fragments and fibers of smaller than 2 mm. High-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene, and polypropylene were the dominant polymers identified in both sample types. In addition, polyethylene co-vinyl acetate, polyester, polyurethane, and polyethylene/hexene-1-copolymer were also detected in sediment samples. Colored microplastics were the most commonly observed in both sample types; pigment yellow 83 was detected in

SUBMITTER: Ramaremisa G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9828735 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature