Role of extracellular polymeric substances in leaching and bioconcentration of benzophenone-3 from microplastic fragments

Jerry Collince Achar, Joorim Na, Hyungjoon Im, Jinho Jung

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Adverse effects of microplastics (MPs) are exacerbated by plastic additives such as benzophenone-3 (BP-3). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the role of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) of Chlorella vulgaris in leaching BP-3 additive (3.0 ± 0.2% wt/wt) from polyethylene MP fragments (99.8 ± 4.1 µm) and subsequent bioconcentration in Daphnia magna. BP-3 leaching in M4 medium was higher at pH 8 than at pH 6, because of the higher solubility of BP-3 (pKa = 7.07) at pH 8. However, EPS reduced BP-3 leaching in M4 medium, possibly because of repulsive interactions between the negatively charged EPS and anionic BP-3. Thus, BP-3 leaching was greater at lower pH (6 > 8) and EPS concentration (20 > 50 mg L−1 as total organic carbon), which was well related to BP-3 sorption capacity of EPS. Although BP-3 uptake in D. magna was decreased at pH 8 by increasing EPS concentration, the bioconcentration of BP-3 in D. magna was increased, possibly because of reduced BP-3 elimination. These findings suggest the important role of EPS in the bioconcentration of anionic plastic additives, which should be further evaluated to understand the underlying toxicokinetic mechanisms.

Original languageEnglish
Article number125832
JournalJournal of hazardous materials
Volume416
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021 Aug 15

Keywords

  • Algae
  • Leachate
  • Microplastic
  • Plastic additive
  • Water flea

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Environmental Engineering
  • Environmental Chemistry
  • Waste Management and Disposal
  • Pollution
  • Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Role of extracellular polymeric substances in leaching and bioconcentration of benzophenone-3 from microplastic fragments'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this