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Towards realism in hazard assessment of plastic and rubber leachates – Methodological considerations

Abstract

While plastic chemicals are key drivers of observed effects to aquatic species, there remains a lack of standardized and fit-for-purpose approaches for experimentally deconvoluting the effects of plastic chemicals from particle effects. This study investigated differences in chemical composition determined using two different organic solvents for extractions (dichloromethane-ethyl acetate, methanol) and by thermal desorption applied to 51 thermoplastic and elastomer products. The composition of natural water leachates of four select elastomers was also investigated. The number of chemical features in each material varied according to the extraction method, with solvent extracts exhibiting the most chemicals, and only 19 compounds commonly identified by all three methods. The number of chemical features in leachates was generally similar to the corresponding chemical extracts, but strong differences in relative composition were detected. While turbulence had minimal impact on leachate composition, particle loading strongly influenced leachate composition, temperature and salinity influenced the leachate concentration for some chemicals, and leaching time depended upon chemical mobility. Leachate composition cannot be readily predicted from particle characterization and multiple parameters are drivers of compositional variance in aquatic leachates. Recommendations for performing leaching studies that are relevant for hazard characterization in a realistic aquatic environment risk assessment scenario are suggested, with a particular focus on particle loading.

Category

Academic article

Client

  • Research Council of Norway (RCN) / 295174
  • Research Council of Norway (RCN) / 344249
  • EU – Horizon Europe (EC/HEU) / 101022370
  • EU – Horizon Europe (EC/HEU) / 101060213

Language

English

Author(s)

Affiliation

  • SINTEF Ocean / Climate and Environment
  • Unknown
  • Norwegian Institute of Water Research

Year

2024

Published in

Journal of Hazardous Materials

ISSN

0304-3894

Publisher

Elsevier

Volume

480

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