The uncontrolled introduction into the environment of plastic polymers have caused the dispersion of plastic fragments, known as Microplastics (MPs), that represent an important topic for public health.
This study was the first to investigate the cause of the release of MPs in mineral waters and to estimate the concentration of MPs smaller than 10 μm both in number of particles and in mass unit.
This study was carried out using a patent method regarding the extraction and analysis of MPs in more kind of matrix.
Therefore, aims of this study were a) to assess the number of MPs with diameters of between 0.5 and 10 μm in mineral waters contained in plastic bottles, b) to evaluate if the physical-chemical properties of mineral waters and bottle quality could influence the release of MPs and, finally, c) to estimate the human daily exposure to MPs due to mineral water consumption.