Low-cost, high-throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests: Introducing the fibre fragmentation scale
Microplastic fibres are found everywhere that researchers have looked for them, from remote mountains to human lungs. However, data are not yet available to facilitate the design of low-shedding textiles. Effective use of standard test methods could establish the impact of processing variables on te...
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Cambridge University Press
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Cambridge Prisms: Plastics |
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| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2755094X24000300/type/journal_article |
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| author | Sophia Murden Lisa Macintyre |
| author_facet | Sophia Murden Lisa Macintyre |
| author_sort | Sophia Murden |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Microplastic fibres are found everywhere that researchers have looked for them, from remote mountains to human lungs. However, data are not yet available to facilitate the design of low-shedding textiles. Effective use of standard test methods could establish the impact of processing variables on textile’s propensity to fragment or shed fibres into the environment, allowing industry to design and select lower-polluting materials. Three new test methods are recommended using the widely accessible accelerated laundering equipment used for colour fastness to wash tests. However, the recommended gravimetric analysis of results takes over 8 h per specimen batch, in addition to specimen preparation, testing and effluent filtration, making analysing test results prohibitively time-consuming, and expensive, for many brands. Visual ‘grey scales’ are very commonly used to grade colour fastness test results, and this article proposes the use of an equivalent ‘fibre fragmentation scale’ to dramatically increase the throughput of fibre fragmentation testing and reduce its cost without compromising accuracy or reliability. Mean fibre fragmentation scale grades given by sets of three observers correlated with gravimetric results at 99% confidence. Subjective grades assigned to test specimens, and photographs of test specimens, had significantly lower variability than gravimetric methods at small, ‘more acceptable’, levels of fibre fragmentation. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-404dd50e5e484327998b0c4de6f3a67d |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2755-094X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cambridge Prisms: Plastics |
| spelling | doaj-art-404dd50e5e484327998b0c4de6f3a67d2024-11-19T11:32:29ZengCambridge University PressCambridge Prisms: Plastics2755-094X2024-01-01210.1017/plc.2024.30Low-cost, high-throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests: Introducing the fibre fragmentation scaleSophia Murden0Lisa Macintyre1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2847-0608School of Textiles and Design, Heriot-Watt University, Galashiels, ScotlandSchool of Textiles and Design, Heriot-Watt University, Galashiels, ScotlandMicroplastic fibres are found everywhere that researchers have looked for them, from remote mountains to human lungs. However, data are not yet available to facilitate the design of low-shedding textiles. Effective use of standard test methods could establish the impact of processing variables on textile’s propensity to fragment or shed fibres into the environment, allowing industry to design and select lower-polluting materials. Three new test methods are recommended using the widely accessible accelerated laundering equipment used for colour fastness to wash tests. However, the recommended gravimetric analysis of results takes over 8 h per specimen batch, in addition to specimen preparation, testing and effluent filtration, making analysing test results prohibitively time-consuming, and expensive, for many brands. Visual ‘grey scales’ are very commonly used to grade colour fastness test results, and this article proposes the use of an equivalent ‘fibre fragmentation scale’ to dramatically increase the throughput of fibre fragmentation testing and reduce its cost without compromising accuracy or reliability. Mean fibre fragmentation scale grades given by sets of three observers correlated with gravimetric results at 99% confidence. Subjective grades assigned to test specimens, and photographs of test specimens, had significantly lower variability than gravimetric methods at small, ‘more acceptable’, levels of fibre fragmentation.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2755094X24000300/type/journal_articlemicroplasticfibre fragmentationfibre quantificationtextile testing |
| spellingShingle | Sophia Murden Lisa Macintyre Low-cost, high-throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests: Introducing the fibre fragmentation scale Cambridge Prisms: Plastics microplastic fibre fragmentation fibre quantification textile testing |
| title | Low-cost, high-throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests: Introducing the fibre fragmentation scale |
| title_full | Low-cost, high-throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests: Introducing the fibre fragmentation scale |
| title_fullStr | Low-cost, high-throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests: Introducing the fibre fragmentation scale |
| title_full_unstemmed | Low-cost, high-throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests: Introducing the fibre fragmentation scale |
| title_short | Low-cost, high-throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests: Introducing the fibre fragmentation scale |
| title_sort | low cost high throughput quantification of microplastics released from textile wash tests introducing the fibre fragmentation scale |
| topic | microplastic fibre fragmentation fibre quantification textile testing |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2755094X24000300/type/journal_article |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sophiamurden lowcosthighthroughputquantificationofmicroplasticsreleasedfromtextilewashtestsintroducingthefibrefragmentationscale AT lisamacintyre lowcosthighthroughputquantificationofmicroplasticsreleasedfromtextilewashtestsintroducingthefibrefragmentationscale |