A digital microscope image of microfibers released during the washing of polyester textiles. (Source: Empa)Researchers from the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) are publishing their findings concerning the presence of microplastics in wastewater.
Researchers are particularly focused on one of the main causes of microplastic presence in wastewater — the microplastic residue that appears in wastewater after machine washing polymer textile clothing — and not on the release of microplastics through the use of cosmetic products like toothpaste, shower gels and creams.
The research, published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, investigated the number of possible reasons for the release of the microfibers into the wastewater, including water temperature, detergent and the length and number of wash cycles.
According to researchers, the findings were fairly consistent across all fields. Water temperature and number and length of wash cycles didn’t affect the number of microfibers released, while detergents (compared to using just water) increased the number of fibers released, but not significantly.
"At first, it looked as though microfibers were generated during washing," says Bernd Nowack from Empa’s Technology and Society department. However, according to the research, that would have been evident in an increased quantity of fibers released in response to longer wash cycles. "Unfortunately, this means that we are not yet able to explain how the released fibers are generated."
A follow-up study is now in the works.
