| Author | Jirayu Lohanut |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.EV-23-06 |
| Subject(s) | Microplastics--Environmental aspect--Thailand--Pathum Thani
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| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Environmental Engineering and Management |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | In this study, the pretreatment methods for sampling microplastics in the air deposition sampler was conducted to select the most suitable method for using in this study. Then, the monitoring of the total deposition of microplastics in the outdoor environment of the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) and Thammasat University (TU), and an indoor environment in the laundry rooms of Dorm K and Dorm ST-6 in AIT was conducted. Three methods to identify microplastics were tested in this study: 1) The process of wet peroxide oxidation (WPO), density separation and stereomicroscope-assisted counting, 2) The process of wet peroxide oxidation (WPO), density separation, followed by Nile red staining, and 3) The process of Nile red staining. Fifty microplastics in the size range of 300-600 μm were applied as the starting number of microplastics. The average number of microplastics in the samples after pre-treatment in Method 1, 2 and 3 was 49±1, 41 ± 6 and 47±4, respectively, and the recovery rate would be 98%, 82% and 94%, respectively. Thus, Method 1 was selected to use in this study. The air sampler used stainless steel bowl with the area of 0.038 m2 to collect the outdoor and indoor air samples. The deposition was monitored during 28th November 2022 to 20th February 2023 while the average temperature was 27.39±2.30 °C, wind speed was 32±0.74 m/s, and relative humidity was 74.27±7.95%. The average deposition of microplastics in an outdoor environment was 2339±917 number/m2/week. The study showed that 58.76% of the microplastics were in white color, followed by black color 31.75 %, blue color 3.48 %, and red color 6.18%. The size of microplastics ranged from 98 μm to 9889 μm. Deposition of microplastics in an indoor environment found 7155±2992 numbers/m2/week. The color of microplastics in an indoor environment was observed that 39.9 % of the microplastics were in black color, followed by white color 36.15%, red color 10.67%, blue color 6.88% and green 0.59%. The size of microplastics ranged from 80 μm to 7541 μm. |
| Year | 2023 |
| Type | Thesis |
| 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 | Environmental Engineering (EV) |
| Chairperson(s) | Ekbordin Winijkul;Nguyen Thi Kim Oanh (Co-Chairperson); |
| Examination Committee(s) | Xue, Wenchao;Cruz, Simon Guerrero; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Royal Thai Government;Asian Institute of Technology Scholarships; |
| Degree | Thesis (M. Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2023 |