EAGER: spatio-temporal variability of microplastics in ocean and river cores using fluorescence microscopy

EAGER：使用荧光显微镜观察海洋和河流核心中微塑料的时空变化

• 批准号: 2019835
• 负责人: Marco Tedesco
• 金额: $ 6.91万
• 依托单位: Columbia University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-04-15 至 2024-03-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2019835&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: EAGER; spatio; temporal; variability; microplastics

During this project, how microplastics accumulate within sediments along the eastern U.S. coastal setting will be investigated. This study will be the first of its kind to use fluorescent microscopy techniques to quantify plastic deposition over time in sediment cores from the Hudson River and Long Island Sound to farther offshore. Results will provide information about how microplastics get transported from their sources to the ocean and how fast they accumulate in sediments. With a better understanding of microplastic accumulation, more reliable computer models can be constructed to predict how sediment layers are generated as well as the future distribution of microplastics and their impact in the coastal environment. This project will promote the training and professional growth of junior scientists and graduate students from Columbia University as well as nearby high school students. This study investigates the spatio-temporal variability microplastics accumulating in sediments within a transect of cores from the Hudson River, Long Island Sound and nearshore ocean within 50 km of the coast. Microplastics will be identified through fluorescence microscopy after staining with a lipid soluble fluorescent dye. Chronostratigraphic data already available on these cores will be used to constrain age estimates and allow quantitative comparison of microplastic accumulation during the last century. In particular, the following hypotheses will be tested: a) vertically-integrated concentrations of microplastics differ for samples collected nearby large urban environments (e.g., cities) vs. those collected in open ocean, with concentrations increasing as we get closer to cities; and b) microplastic concentrations began accumulating around 1950 and have been increasing at an exponential rate over the past few decades. Results from this project will provide basic data needed to understand natural processes that control the transport and distribution of microplastic particulates over time and to develop models that predict their future microplastic concentrations in the oceanic sedimentary environment.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

在该项目中，将研究微塑料如何在美国东部沿海地区的沉积物中积累。这项研究将是第一个使用荧光显微镜技术来量化哈德逊河和长岛海峡沉积物中塑料随时间沉积的研究。结果将提供有关微塑料如何从其来源转移到海洋以及它们在沉积物中积累的速度的信息。通过更好地了解微塑料积累，可以构建更可靠的计算机模型来预测沉积物层是如何生成的。以及该项目将促进哥伦比亚大学初级科学家和研究生以及附近高中生的培训和专业成长。这项研究调查了沉积物中积累的微塑料的时空变化。哈德逊河、长岛海峡和海岸 50 公里范围内的近岸海洋的岩心横断面内的微塑料将在用脂溶性荧光染料染色后通过荧光显微镜进行识别。这些岩心上现有的年代地层数据将用于限制年龄估计，并定量比较上个世纪期间的微塑料积累情况，特别是，将测试以下假设：a）在大型附近收集的样本中，微塑料的垂直综合浓度有所不同。城市环境（例如城市）与在开放海洋中收集的微塑料浓度，随着我们越来越接近城市，微塑料浓度开始增加；b) 微塑料浓度在 1950 年左右开始积累，并且在过去几年中以指数速度增加；该项目的结果将提供所需的基本数据，以了解随着时间的推移控制微塑料颗粒的运输和分布的自然过程，并开发预测海洋沉积环境中未来微塑料浓度的模型。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并具有通过使用基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。