Scholarlink

<p>Disposable plastic cups used to hold beverages can release microplastics (MPs) that pose a potential risk to human health. In this study, the release of MPs from polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polystyrene (PS) cups was systematically investigated under simulated real-world conditions by varying the temperature (20, 40, and 70 °C), contact time (30, 60, and 120 min), and food simulants (4% acetic acid, 10% ethanol, 50% ethanol). The experimental results demonstrate that the highest temperature (70 °C) and longest exposure (120 min) caused a significant increase in MPs release, with PS cups showing the highest level (1281.33 ± 27.23 particles/L), particularly in 50 % ethanol food simulant. Scanning electron microscopy(SEM) revealed the formation of surface cracks and protuberances after thermal treatment, while attenuated total reflectance fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) indicates that the most pronounced chemical alterations in PS. Based on typical consumer behavior, we estimate that adults could ingest up to 6916–66612 MPs particles annually from disposable cups. These results indicating the interplay between cup material, usage conditions, and MPs release mechanisms suggest avoiding prolonged storage of hot liquids in PS containers to mitigate health risks.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Temperature and ethanol synergistically enhance microplastic release from disposable cups: mechanistic insights and health risk assessment of typical plastics

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年1月20日

查看全文
  • Simin Li,
  • Linzhen Yang,
  • Xin Meng,
  • Wanchen Sun,
  • Hongzheng Zhang,
  • Jingru Yang

摘要

Disposable plastic cups used to hold beverages can release microplastics (MPs) that pose a potential risk to human health. In this study, the release of MPs from polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polystyrene (PS) cups was systematically investigated under simulated real-world conditions by varying the temperature (20, 40, and 70 °C), contact time (30, 60, and 120 min), and food simulants (4% acetic acid, 10% ethanol, 50% ethanol). The experimental results demonstrate that the highest temperature (70 °C) and longest exposure (120 min) caused a significant increase in MPs release, with PS cups showing the highest level (1281.33 ± 27.23 particles/L), particularly in 50 % ethanol food simulant. Scanning electron microscopy(SEM) revealed the formation of surface cracks and protuberances after thermal treatment, while attenuated total reflectance fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) indicates that the most pronounced chemical alterations in PS. Based on typical consumer behavior, we estimate that adults could ingest up to 6916–66612 MPs particles annually from disposable cups. These results indicating the interplay between cup material, usage conditions, and MPs release mechanisms suggest avoiding prolonged storage of hot liquids in PS containers to mitigate health risks.