Aqueous Dispersions of Polypropylene: Toward Reference Materials for Characterizing Nanoplastics

Microplastics and nanoplastics pollute the natural environment all over the world, but the full extent of the hazards posed by this waste is unclear. While research on microplastics is well advanced, little work has been done on nanoplastics. This discrepancy is mainly due to the lacking ability to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Macromolecular rapid communications. 2023-03, Vol.44 (6), p.e2200874-n/a
Main Authors: Hildebrandt, Jana, Thünemann, Andreas F.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Dispersions
Microplastics
Nanoparticles
nanoplastics
Natural environment
Plastic pollution
Plastics
Pollutants
Polydispersity
Polypropylene
Polypropylenes
Reference materials
Surfactants
Water Pollutants, Chemical
Zeta potential
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Summary:Microplastics and nanoplastics pollute the natural environment all over the world, but the full extent of the hazards posed by this waste is unclear. While research on microplastics is well advanced, little work has been done on nanoplastics. This discrepancy is mainly due to the lacking ability to detect nanoplastics in biologically and environmentally relevant matrices. Nanoplastics reference materials can help the development of suitable methods for identifying and quantifying nanoplastics in nature. The aim is to synthesize nanoplastics made from one of the most commonly used plastics, namely polypropylene. An easy way to produce long‐term stable aqueous dispersions of polypropylene nanoparticles (nano polypropylene) is reported. The nanoplastic particles, prepared by mechanical breakdown, show a mean hydrodynamic diameter of Dh = 180.5 ± 5.8  nm and a polydispersity index of PDI = 0.084 ± 0.02. No surfactant is needed to obtain dispersion which is stable for more than 6 months. The colloidal stability of the surfactant‐free nano polypropylene dispersions is explained by their low zeta potential of ζ = −43 ± 2 mV. Nanoplastics dispersions are formed, which display colloidal stability at ambient conditions for several months. No surfactant is needed when polypropylene granules are mechanically crushed in acetone and subsequently transferred to aqueous solution. A homogeneity and stability study is presented using dynamic light scattering and zeta potential measurements.
ISSN:1022-1336
1521-3927
DOI:10.1002/marc.202200874