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Quantification is more than counting: actions required to accurately quantify and report isolated marine microplastics

Rivers, Molly, GWINNETT, Claire and Woodall, Lucy (2019) Quantification is more than counting: actions required to accurately quantify and report isolated marine microplastics. Marine Pollution Bulletin. pp. 100-104. ISSN 0025-326x

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Abstract or description

Research on marine microplastics continues to increase in popularity, with a large number of studies being published every year. However, with this plethora of research comes the need for a standardised approach to quantification and analysis procedures in order to produce comparative assessments. Using data collected from neuston nets in 2016, parameters for quantifying microplastics were compared. Surface area was the most accurate parameter to describe plastic size and should be used to describe plastic quantity (per km2 or m3), alongside abundance. Of the two most commonly used methods for calculating plastic concentration (flowmeter and ship’s log), ship’s log provided consistently smaller abundances, with the exception of one sample, calling for a standardisation in the techniques and measurements used to quantify floating microplastics.

Item Type: Article
Faculty: School of Law, Policing and Forensics > Criminal Justice and Forensic Science
Depositing User: Claire GWINNETT
Date Deposited: 19 Dec 2018 14:34
Last Modified: 24 Feb 2023 13:53
URI: https://eprints.staffs.ac.uk/id/eprint/5025

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