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Microplastics in the air of school premises

Organization(s):OS Banija, OS Banija
Country:Croatia, Croatia
Student(s):Marko Fičko, Vita Grubešić, Anessa Kiris., Tara Marković
Grade Level:Middle School (grades 6-8, ages 11-14)
Contributors:Mirela Sertić Perić, PMF Zagreb Renata Matoničkin Kepčija, PMF Zagreb
Report Type(s):International Virtual Science Symposium Report, Standard Research Report
Protocols:Earth As a System
Presentation Video: View Video
Language(s):Croatian
Date Submitted:01/11/2025
In our project, we investigated the occurrence of microplastics in the air of school premises. Our research questions were: Are there microplastics in the air of the school premises we investigated? Does the amount of microplastics in the rooms studied differ from one another? Are there fewer microplastics in all the rooms studied during the school vacations? What types of microplastics will we find in the rooms studied? We conducted the test in three classrooms, in the school kitchen and in the school gym in two test periods during classes (from September 27, 2023 to October 6, 2023) and during the school vacations (from December 22, 2023 to January 1, 2024). We took two replicate samples in jars in which we filled 500 ml of distilled water and placed them side by side at a height of 2 m in the above-mentioned rooms. The results showed that microplastics were present in all the studied rooms and that the average number of microplastic particles/m² in the studied rooms is different in both study periods. During the school vacations, the results show a decrease in the average number of microplastics/m² in all rooms studied, except in the school kitchen and physics classroom. In all samples in both periods studied, we found mainly textile fibers, most of which were cellulose fibers, followed by synthetic fibers. Other microplastic particles were found in traces.



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