Offshore surface waters of Antarctica are free of microplastics, as revealed by a circum-Antarctic study

Piotr Kuklinski; Leszek Wicikowski; Mariusz Koper; Tomasz Gralak,; Hanna Leniec-Koper; Michał Barasiński; Magdalena Talar; Ireneusz Kamiński; Robert Kibart; Wojciech Małecki

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.110573

Offshore surface waters of Antarctica are free of microplastics, as revealed by a circum-Antarctic study

Abstract

In 2018, during a circum navigation of Antarctica below 62° S by the sailing boat Katharsis II, the presence of plastics was investigated with surface sampling nets at ten evenly spaced locations (every 36° of longitude). Although fibres that appeared to be plastic (particles up to 2 cm) were found in numbers ranging from 1 particle (0.002 particles per m3) to 171 particles (1.366 particles per m3) per station, a Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis indicated that these particles were not composed of plastic. The fibres which superficially reminded plastic were composed of silica and are of biological origin most likely generated by phytoplankton (diatoms). Therefore, the offshore Antarctic locations were proven to be free of floating microplastics.

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Authors (10)

Piotr Kuklinski
Leszek Wicikowski dr inż.
Mariusz Koper
Tomasz Gralak,
Hanna Leniec-Koper
Michał Barasiński
Magdalena Talar
Ireneusz Kamiński
Robert Kibart
Wojciech Małecki

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DOI:: Digital Object Identifier (open in new tab) 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.110573
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Category:: Articles
Type:: artykuły w czasopismach
Published in:: MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN no. 149,
ISSN: 0025-326X
Language:: English
Publication year:: 2019
Bibliographic description:: Kuklinski P., Wicikowski L., Koper M., Gralak, T., Leniec-Koper H., Barasiński M., Talar M., Kamiński I., Kibart R., Małecki W.: Offshore surface waters of Antarctica are free of microplastics, as revealed by a circum-Antarctic study// MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN -Vol. 149, (2019), s.110573-
DOI:: Digital Object Identifier (open in new tab) 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.110573
Verified by:: Gdańsk University of Technology