Articles | Volume 19, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-19-371-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-19-371-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
19 Jan 2026
Research article |
| 19 Jan 2026
| 19 Jan 2026
Atmospheric deposition of microplastics: a sampling and analytical method including the associated measurement uncertainties
Narain M. Ashta
Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
Guillaume Crosset-Perrotin
Eawag – Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
Angélique Moraz
Agroscope, Zurich, 8046, Switzerland
Josua Stoffel
Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
Ueli Schilt
Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
Eric Ceglie
Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
David Schoenenberger
Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
Matthias Philipp
Eawag – Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
Thomas D. Bucheli
Agroscope, Zurich, 8046, Switzerland
Ralf Kaegi
Eawag – Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
Christoph Hueglin
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, Duebendorf, 8600, Switzerland
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Narain M. Ashta, Guillaume Crosset-Perrotin, Angélique Moraz, Matthias Philipp, Thomas D. Bucheli, Ralf Kaegi, and Christoph Hueglin
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1473, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1473, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (ACP).
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Microplastics are environmental contaminants of concern that are also present in air. Using an infrared-based device, we measured the amount of microplastics deposited from air to different parts of Switzerland over a one-year period. We found microplastics everywhere, with levels in the city being more than twice as high as those in suburban, rural and mountainous places. We also found that air is an important transporter of microplastics that contaminates agricultural land and water bodies.
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This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (ACP).
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Microplastics are environmental contaminants of concern that are also present in air. Using an infrared-based device, we measured the amount of microplastics deposited from air to different parts of Switzerland over a one-year period. We found microplastics everywhere, with levels in the city being more than twice as high as those in suburban, rural and mountainous places. We also found that air is an important transporter of microplastics that contaminates agricultural land and water bodies.
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Lubna Dada, Benjamin T. Brem, Lidia-Marta Amarandi-Netedu, Martine Collaud Coen, Nikolaos Evangeliou, Christoph Hueglin, Nora Nowak, Robin Modini, Martin Steinbacher, and Martin Gysel-Beer
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Natalie M. Mahowald, Longlei Li, Julius Vira, Marje Prank, Douglas S. Hamilton, Hitoshi Matsui, Ron L. Miller, P. Louis Lu, Ezgi Akyuz, Daphne Meidan, Peter Hess, Heikki Lihavainen, Christine Wiedinmyer, Jenny Hand, Maria Grazia Alaimo, Célia Alves, Andres Alastuey, Paulo Artaxo, Africa Barreto, Francisco Barraza, Silvia Becagli, Giulia Calzolai, Shankararaman Chellam, Ying Chen, Patrick Chuang, David D. Cohen, Cristina Colombi, Evangelia Diapouli, Gaetano Dongarra, Konstantinos Eleftheriadis, Johann Engelbrecht, Corinne Galy-Lacaux, Cassandra Gaston, Dario Gomez, Yenny González Ramos, Roy M. Harrison, Chris Heyes, Barak Herut, Philip Hopke, Christoph Hüglin, Maria Kanakidou, Zsofia Kertesz, Zbigniew Klimont, Katriina Kyllönen, Fabrice Lambert, Xiaohong Liu, Remi Losno, Franco Lucarelli, Willy Maenhaut, Beatrice Marticorena, Randall V. Martin, Nikolaos Mihalopoulos, Yasser Morera-Gómez, Adina Paytan, Joseph Prospero, Sergio Rodríguez, Patricia Smichowski, Daniela Varrica, Brenna Walsh, Crystal L. Weagle, and Xi Zhao
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 4665–4702, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-4665-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-4665-2025, 2025
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Aerosol particles are an important part of the Earth system, but their concentrations are spatially and temporally heterogeneous, as well as being variable in size and composition. Here, we present a new compilation of PM2.5 and PM10 aerosol observations, focusing on the spatial variability across different observational stations, including composition, and demonstrate a method for comparing the data sets to model output.
Stuart K. Grange, Pascal Rubli, Andrea Fischer, Dominik Brunner, Christoph Hueglin, and Lukas Emmenegger
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Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-1, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-1, 2024
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Adam Brighty, Véronique Jacob, Gaëlle Uzu, Lucille Borlaza, Sébastien Conil, Christoph Hueglin, Stuart K. Grange, Olivier Favez, Cécile Trébuchon, and Jean-Luc Jaffrezo
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Gang Chen, Yulia Sosedova, Francesco Canonaco, Roman Fröhlich, Anna Tobler, Athanasia Vlachou, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, Carlo Bozzetti, Christoph Hueglin, Peter Graf, Urs Baltensperger, Jay G. Slowik, Imad El Haddad, and André S. H. Prévôt
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 15081–15101, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-15081-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-15081-2021, 2021
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A novel, advanced source apportionment technique was applied to a dataset measured in Magadino. Rolling positive matrix factorisation (PMF) allows for retrieving more realistic, time-dependent, and detailed information on organic aerosol sources. The strength of the rolling PMF mechanism is highlighted by comparing it with results derived from conventional seasonal PMF. Overall, this comprehensive interpretation of aerosol chemical speciation monitor data could be a role model for similar work.
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Short summary
Microplastics are environmental contaminants of global concern. In this study, we developed a method for measuring the amount of microplastics in atmospheric samples. In doing so, we introduced a new way to collect rain/snow samples and a custom software that helps with the analysis of microplastics. We then assessed the precision of our method and tested it on real samples. Our work may be useful for researchers seeking to measure microplastics in environmental samples.
Microplastics are environmental contaminants of global concern. In this study, we developed a...
