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Standards Development
This document specifies a laboratory method for the extraction of non-biodegradable and biodegradable plastic particles including microplastics from compost matrices from industrial or home composting origin. The method describes different extraction steps assuring homogenous sampling, particle and polymer stability, and high recovery rate. The extraction yields a representative fraction of plastic particles including microplastics that can be further analysed.
This document will not describe downstream analytical methods for the identification and quantification of extracted microplastics in detail but will offer an overview of the analytical methods that can be used for the beforementioned purposes.
The method in this document is not intended for microplastic extraction from terrestrial or aquatic compartments.
Microplastics are ubiquitous in the environment, occurring also in complex environmental (e.g. soil, sediments) and technical (e.g. compost) matrices of industrial or home composting origin. The compost oftentimes contains processed municipal solid wastes including conventional plastic polymers like polyester and polyethylene but may also contain biodegradable plastics. Any plastic material easily fragments to smaller (secondary) microplastics and, in case of non-biodegradable plastics, will last for a long time in compost or, when compost is used as fertiliser in agricultural soils, in the environment. The presence of any sized plastics thus not only influences the quality of the compost, but also poses a threat to the biota if compost is used in the environment.
To analyse microplastics in compost, it is vital to guarantee a quantitatively and qualitatively sound extraction from the respective environmental or technical matrices, including homogenous sampling, evaluations of particle and polymer stability, and high recovery rates. Generally, the extraction of microplastics from compost is poorly comparable between scientific studies due to inconsistent methodologies used and because the experiments often lack quality assessments. Therefore, a growing need for a standardised method for microplastics extraction from compost for regulatory or standardisation purposes is evident. Furthermore, a potential need for standardised extraction methods from compost can be anticipated, as the existing standards, dealing with organic recycling of packaging materials (EN 13432 or ISO 17088) are under revision or will undergo a future revision.
This document proposes a method for the extraction of microplastics from compost that describes different extraction steps to finally yield an analysable fraction of microplastics. The method includes homogenisation of the compost material, ultrasonication for deagglomeration, oxidation for the removal of the organic material, removal of oxidation residuals and inorganic compounds by sieving and subsequent density separation. Each step of the method provides details on the equipment used, offers clarification and necessity of the respective procedure, and includes procedures for quality control measures (recovery and stability tests).
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