Production and comparison of artificially aged microplastic particles

This paper describes the development of artificially aged microplastic particles which are currently not available on the market, as a reproducible sample material used for validation of filter technologies or other mitigation or cleaning technologies. Therefore an initial approach for producing such particles was created and reviewed. In the experimental part, two types of plastic materials were examined: polyethylene (PE) and polyvinylchloride (PVC). These were ground to small particles. Afterwards, in the course of selected ageing processes they were exposed to UV radiation or subjected to air, freshwater (tap water) and salt water (3.5 % sodium chloride solution) at increased temperatures of 60°C und 90°C in a thermostatic oven. Laser diffraction was used for particle size analysis of the produced particles. Furthermore, surface analysis using scanning electron microscopy and infrared spectroscopy reveal any changes due to the processes of fine grinding and ageing. For PVC-U grinding material have similar geometry as microplastic and similar ageing results, for HDPE granulate itself might be used as a standardised microplastic material.