Researchers hailing from Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) have determined that the quantity of microplastics present in bottled drinking water exhibits almost no correlation with the container’s material. This finding runs contrary to the common belief that plastic bottles harbor significantly higher concentrations. As reported by TASS, the critical factor influencing contamination levels is the water treatment process employed during manufacturing.
To validate this hypothesis, the scientists subjected samples of industrially packaged drinking water from various brands—contained in plastic, glass, and Tetra Pak cartons—along with samples of tap water, to a process of staged filtration. The quantity of microplastic particles across all packaging types did not surpass 10,000 per liter. Translating this into mass concentration yields an extremely low figure: less than 1 nanogram per liter.
Interestingly, the samples retrieved from glass bottles and Tetra Pak actually contained more microplastic than those from plastic packaging. This observation clearly contradicts the widespread notion that plastic itself is the primary source of microplastic contamination in drinking water.
“The outcomes we observed indicate that the packaging material has virtually no effect on the particle count of plastic found in drinking water. The protocols for industrial water preparation are more consequential, particularly since this processing does not occur in sterile environments. It must be stressed that the concentration of colloidally dissolved microplastic particles in drinking water is so minute that it is inconsequential for the typical consumer,” remarked Academician Alexey Khokhlov, Head of the Department of Polymer and Crystal Physics at MSU’s Faculty of Physics.
According to Dmitry Volkov, a Senior Research Fellow at MSU’s Department of Analytical Chemistry, bottled water currently undergoes rigorous purification, resulting in substantially lower levels of particles, whether biological or synthetic in origin. Nevertheless, the issue of microplastics in the environment and foodstuffs remains vital; research into this area has only spanned a few years, and scientists still face a substantial body of work ahead.
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