ArticleScientific reports2021
Burial of microplastics in freshwater sediments facilitated by iron-organo flocs.
Article in Scientific reports, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 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.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- Microplastic fibres as active agents in mud deposition.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Prevailing wind patterns influence the distribution of plastics in small urban lakes.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Settling Velocities of Small Microplastic Fragments and Fibers.Environmental science & technology · 2024Article
- Downward migrating microplastics in lake sediments are a tricky indicator for the onset of the Anthropocene.Science advances · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Microplastics are ubiquitous in standing freshwater bodies, consequently lakes and reservoirs may be important sinks for these contaminants. However, the mechanisms governing the deposition of microplastics and their interactions with the sediments are understudied. We demonstrate how aggregation-based transport facilitates the sinking and infiltration of buoyant microplastics into freshwater reservoir sediments by employing experiments with intact sediment cores. Buoyant polyethylene microplastics were rapidly (1-4 h) incorporated into sinking iron-organic aggregates, followed by swift deposition into sediments. Ingression of microplastic bearing flocs into sediments was completed within 6 days and led to stable deposition of the incorporated particles for at least 2 months. Most microplastics were deposited in the top 2 cm of the sediments and few particles (5-15%) were re-released into the water. Our results show at least 85% burial of microplastics, indicating the significant role of freshwaters with low flow velocities in reducing microplastic loads to the oceans.
Identifiers
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Registered trials
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