ArticleJournal of hazardous materials2021
Uncovering the release of micro/nanoplastics from disposable face masks at times of COVID-19.
Article in Journal of hazardous materials, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
55 citing papers in PubMed, 171 citations in OpenAlex.
- Detection and Fate of Microplastics and Nanoplastics and Technologies for Their Removal.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- A Cost-Effective Standardized Quantitative Detection Method for Soil Microplastics in Different Substrates.Toxics · 2026Article
- Microplastics and nanoplastics detection using flow cytometry: Challenges and methodological advances with fluorescent dye application.MethodsX · 2025Review
- Article
- COVID-19 pandemic-related drugs and microplastics from mask fibers jointly affect soil functions and processes.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2024Article
- Recycling facemasks into civil construction material to manage waste generated during COVID-19.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2024Article
- The Fate of Microplastics, Derived from Disposable Masks, in Natural Aquatic Environments.Toxics · 2024Article
- Plastics and Micro/Nano-Plastics (MNPs) in the Environment: Occurrence, Impact, and Toxicity.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Review
- Global face mask pollution: threats to the environment and wildlife, and potential solutions.The Science of the total environment · 2023Review
- Release of microplastics from disposable face mask in tropical climate.Regional studies in marine science · 2023Article
- Different weathering conditions affect the release of microplastics by masks.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2023Article
- Current knowledge on the presence, biodegradation, and toxicity of discarded face masks in the environment.Journal of environmental chemical engineering · 2023Review
- Facemask: Protection or threat?Marine pollution bulletin · 2023Article
- Plastic wastes in the time of COVID-19: Their environmental hazards and implications for sustainable energy resilience and circular bio-economies.The Science of the total environment · 2023Review
- Environmental impacts of covid-19 pandemic: Release of microplastics, organic contaminants and trace metals from face masks under ambient environmental conditions.Environmental research · 2023Article
- Methine initiated polypropylene-based disposable face masks aging validated by micromechanical properties loss of atomic force microscopy.Journal of hazardous materials · 2023Article
- Probing nanoplastics derived from polypropylene face masks with hyperspectral dark-field microscopy.The Science of the total environment · 2023Article
- Abundance and characterization of personal protective equipment (PPE) polluting Kish Island, Persian Gulf.The Science of the total environment · 2023Article
- A review of disposable facemasks during the COVID-19 pandemic: A focus on microplastics release.Chemosphere · 2023Review
- Personal protective equipment (PPE) pollution driven by COVID-19 pandemic in Marina Beach, the longest urban beach in Asia: Abundance, distribution, and analytical characterization.Marine pollution bulletin · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Wearing face masks is a fundamental prevention and control measure to limit the spread of COVID-19. The universal use and improper disposal of single-use face masks are raising serious concerns for their environmental impact, owing to the foregone contribution to plastic water pollution during and beyond the pandemic. This study aims to uncover the release of micro/nanoplastics generated from face mask nonwoven textiles once discarded in the aquatic environment. As assessed by microscopy and flow cytometry, the exposure to different levels of mechanical stress forces (from low to high shear stress intensities) was proved effective in breaking and fragmenting face mask fabrics into smaller debris, including macro-, micro-, and nano-plastics. Even at the low level of fabric deterioration following the first second of treatment, a single mask could release in water thousands of microplastic fibers and up to 10
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.