There’s danger in the air…
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Scientists are on the hunt for invisible plastics that we’re breathing. But they’re hard to see, even with our best technology.
Michael Tawadrous and team at the University of Toronto are on the case! They borrowed detective tools from other fields to sleuth out the airborne nanoplastics.
Their improved method identified the plastics’ unique molecular fingerprints, called markers.
Looking at a control sample of nanoplastics, the markers, called polyethylene terephthalate monomers, made up ten percent of the sample! Now researchers can “see” them in real time!
With this new way to investigate, nanoplastics have nowhere to hide. The jig is up!
Reference: Tawadrous, M. a. R., Lee, A. K. Y., & Chan, A. W. H. (2025). Characterization of airborne PET nanoplastic particles using Aerosol mass spectrometry. Aerosol Science and Technology, 59(6), 691–704. https://doi.org/10.1080/02786826.2025.2451070