| Author | Soklin Meng |
| Call Number | AIT RSPR no.MPA-21-30 |
| Subject(s) | Microplastics--Environmental aspects--Thailand--Asian Institute of Technology
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| Note | A research study submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Marine Plastics Abatement |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Indoor and outdoor number concentration of airborne microplastic were monitored in this study. The football field and laundry room were selected as outdoor and indoor locations for sampling, respectively. Three samples for each location and other laboratory activities were conducted in the campus of Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) in Pathumthani, Thailand. In this study, high-volume air sampler with the flow rate of 1.25m3 /min, three mesh sieves (size 4000µm or 37µm, 1000µm, and 297µm), and quartz fiber filter (size 2.2µm) were equipped to collect microplastics in the air. Microscopic examination with 40X magnification was used to count number and identify types of microplastics from the samples. The hydrogen peroxide and Irion (II) solution and sodium chloride were used for digestion, followed by density separation. Then, the glass fiber filter was used for filtration. The results showed the average number of airborne microplastics (AMPs) from the indoor location (87 microplastics) was higher than the outdoor location (40 microplastics) for four hour sampling. Thus, the average number concentration of microplastic from indoor location (0.29 n/m3 ) was higher than the concentration of AMPs from outdoor location (0.13 n/m3 ). The concentration of AMPs after extraction were higher than the concentration before extraction. This finding indicates the possibility of contamination of the fiber from the filters to the samples. The shapes of microplastics were granule, sphere, fragment, and fiber. Fiber shape comprised 43% from outdoor location and 83% from indoor location, respectively. For the colors, black, white, red, and yellow were observed. For the indoor location, the black and white colors had the same share, approximately 40% each. It is recommended that the smallest size of sieve (≤ 37µm) should be used for further studies of atmospheric microplastics. Moreover, digestion process for airborne microplastics should be done without using filter to avoid the contamination. It is also recommended to perform the sampling validation to assess traceability, repeatability, and reproducibility of results. FTIR and Raman spectroscopic technique should be considered for polymer type identification for the future studies. |
| Year | 2021 |
| Type | Research Study Project Report (RSPR) |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Energy and Climate Change (Former title: Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Change (DEECC)) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Marine Plastic Abatement (MPA) |
| Chairperson(s) | Ekbordin Winijkul |
| Examination Committee(s) | Visvanathan, Chettiyappan;Xue, Wenchao |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Government of Japan |
| Degree | Research studies project report (M.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2021 |