Location

Presentation- College of Science and Mathematics

Document Type and Release Option

Thesis Presentation (Restricted to Georgia Southern)

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Jay Hodgson

Faculty Mentor Email

jhodgson@georgiasouthern.edu

Presentation Year

2021

Start Date

26-4-2021 12:00 AM

End Date

30-4-2021 12:00 AM

Keywords

Georgia Southern University, Honors Symposium, Presentation

Description

Microplastics are plastic particles smaller than 5 mm. Various pollution routes have led to abundant microplastics in marine environments. To better understand the severity of microplastic contamination, it is important to measure for microplastics in all marine habitats and organisms; yet, data describing algal capture of microplastics are scarce. The purpose of our study was to test algal filament length using mimics to determine whether filament length results in different amounts of microplastics being captured. We hypothesized that more microplastic would be trapped in longer than shorter filaments. This was tested using weathered microplastic polyester fibers and styrofoam in two algal mimic treatments: pipe cleaners with 1.0 cm and 0.5 cm filament lengths. We observed that full length mimics trapped 23.3% more fibers, which was significantly greater than half length mimics. Preliminary results for styrofoam indicate a similar trend as the fibers, supporting our hypothesis that filament length influences microplastic capture. If future field experiments support these results, then this implies that longer, palatable algal filaments may introduce greater amounts of microplastic into the food web. Ultimately, determining how microplastics enter the food web will advance our understanding of microplastic concentrations in animals, including the human diet.

Academic Unit

College of Science and Mathematics

Comments

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Apr 26th, 12:00 AM Apr 30th, 12:00 AM

Algal Mimic Filament Length Affects Microplastic Capture

Presentation- College of Science and Mathematics

Microplastics are plastic particles smaller than 5 mm. Various pollution routes have led to abundant microplastics in marine environments. To better understand the severity of microplastic contamination, it is important to measure for microplastics in all marine habitats and organisms; yet, data describing algal capture of microplastics are scarce. The purpose of our study was to test algal filament length using mimics to determine whether filament length results in different amounts of microplastics being captured. We hypothesized that more microplastic would be trapped in longer than shorter filaments. This was tested using weathered microplastic polyester fibers and styrofoam in two algal mimic treatments: pipe cleaners with 1.0 cm and 0.5 cm filament lengths. We observed that full length mimics trapped 23.3% more fibers, which was significantly greater than half length mimics. Preliminary results for styrofoam indicate a similar trend as the fibers, supporting our hypothesis that filament length influences microplastic capture. If future field experiments support these results, then this implies that longer, palatable algal filaments may introduce greater amounts of microplastic into the food web. Ultimately, determining how microplastics enter the food web will advance our understanding of microplastic concentrations in animals, including the human diet.