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. 2022 Dec;215(Pt 2):114337.
doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.114337. Epub 2022 Sep 15.

Release of phthalate esters (PAEs) and microplastics (MPs) from face masks and gloves during the COVID-19 pandemic

Gabriel Enrique De-la-Torre  1 , Diana Carolina Dioses-Salinas  1 , Sina Dobaradaran  2 , Jörg Spitz  3 , Iraj Nabipour  4 , Mozhgan Keshtkar  5 , Razegheh Akhbarizadeh  6 , Mahbubeh Tangestani  7 , Delaram Abedi  7 , Fatemeh Javanfekr  7
Affiliations

Release of phthalate esters (PAEs) and microplastics (MPs) from face masks and gloves during the COVID-19 pandemic

Gabriel Enrique De-la-Torre et al. Environ Res. 2022 Dec.

Abstract

Marine pollution with personal protective equipment (PPE) has recently gained major attention. Multiple studies reported the release of microplastics (MPs) and chemical contaminants from face masks, the most used PPE type. However, not much is known concerning the release of phthalate esters (PAEs) in aquatic media, as well as the hazard posed by other types of PPE. In the present study, we investigated the release of MPs and PAEs from face masks and gloves recovered from the environment. The results indicated that both PPEs release MPs comparable to the literature, but higher concentrations were presented by face masks. In turn, the total concentration of six PAEs was higher in gloves than in face masks. The release of these contaminants is exacerbated over time. The present study allows researchers to understand the contribution of PPE to marine pollution while accounting for gloves, a generally overlooked source of contaminants.

Keywords: Contaminant; Fiber; Leachate; Microplastics; Phthalate esters; Plastic.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Percentages of MPs of different sizes under different exposure times, mediums, and types of PPE. #: Exposure days. D: Distilled water. S: Seawater. M: Masks. G: Gloves. L: Length (μm).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Mean MPs/PPE at different exposure times and experimental conditions. Error bars indicate standard deviation. Letters indicate significant differences. ns: No significant differences (Kruskal-Wallis: p > 0.05).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Percentages of independent PAEs under different exposure times, mediums, and types of PPE.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Mean Σ7PAEs at different exposure times and experimental conditions. Error bars indicate standard deviation. Letters indicate significant differences. ns: No significant differences (Kruskal-Wallis: p > 0.05).
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Multidimensional scaling (MDS) graphs displaying the mean Σ7PAEs and MPs abundance in each treatment. The first graph (top) highlights the exposure time variable in days, while the second graph (bottom) highlights the type of PPE.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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