# Occurrence and backtracking of microplastic mass loads including tire wear particles in northern Atlantic air

## TL;DR

This study finds microplastics, including tire wear particles, in the marine atmosphere, even in remote Arctic areas, showing the ocean can act as both a sink and a source.

## Contribution

The study presents new data on microplastic mass loads in the marine atmosphere, including their sources and transport mechanisms.

## Key findings

- Microplastics were found ubiquitously in the marine atmosphere, with concentrations up to 37.5 ng m⁻³.
- Tire wear particles and clusters of polystyrene, polypropylene, and polyurethane were detected.
- The ocean is shown to act as both a sink and a source of microplastics through atmospheric transport.

## Abstract

Few studies report the occurrence of microplastics (MP), including tire wear particles (TWP) in the marine atmosphere, and little data is available regarding their size or sources. Here we present active air sampling devices (low- and high-volume samplers) for the evaluation of composition and MP mass loads in the marine atmosphere. Air was sampled during a research cruise along the Norwegian coast up to Bear Island. Samples were analyzed with pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, generating a mass-based data set for MP in the marine atmosphere. Here we show the ubiquity of MP, even in remote Arctic areas with concentrations up to 37.5 ng m−3. Cluster of polyethylene terephthalate (max. 1.5 ng m−3) were universally present. TWP (max. 35 ng m−3) and cluster of polystyrene, polypropylene, and polyurethane (max. 1.1 ng m−3) were also detected. Atmospheric transport and dispersion models, suggested the introduction of MP into the marine atmosphere equally from sea- and land-based emissions, transforming the ocean from a sink into a source for MP.

Microplastics the marine atmosphere are a highly relevant subject, yet barely investigated. This study showed their ubiquity in the nanogram range even in remote Artic regions and depict the ocean acts as both a sink and source for microplastics