Black and green
The impact of tire wear particles on soil and plant nutrient cycles

Black and green: The impact of tire wear particles on soil and plant nutrient cycles

Tire wear particles (TWPs) are the most dominant source of microplastic emission to the environment. Owing to their transport over short distances by air and runoff water from road surfaces, TWPs can reach agricultural soils adjacent to roads and endanger soil fertility and sustainable food production. Until now, research on potential hazardous effects of TWPs on the soil-plant system has been carried out by applying artificially produced TWPs (e.g., by grinding tires), mostly in experiments with short growing periods (several weeks). In contrast, real-world TWPs, i.e., those TWPs present in soils, are a mixture of TWPs of different ages, surfaces and adherent mineral particles. In the Black and Green project we will perform growth experiments with real-world TWPs and associated road wear particles over whole plant growth periods. Furthermore we will investigate the sorption potential of TWP for nutrients.

PhD student: Julian Bornemann
Supervisors: Dr. Collin Weber, Dr. Kai Nitzsche, Prof. Moritz Bigalke
Funding: Fritz und Margot Faudi-Stiftung