A new model for the terminal settling velocity of microplastics

Microplastic (MP) settling process is important for the transport of microplastic particles (MPs, <5 mm) in water bodies. However, for the control parameter of the drag coefficient (Cd), no generalized formula has been proposed for MPs of different shapes and materials. In this study, a total of 1343 MP settling data were collected from the literature. It was found that the drag law for perfect spheres cannot reasonably predict Cd for MPs with particle Reynolds number of 1-103. A new formula for Cd was developed by introducing the dimensionless particle diameter (d⁎) and two shape descriptors. The absolute error of the new formula is 15.2%, smaller than those (42.5-72.8%) of other existing formulas. Moreover, an explicit model was developed for MP settling velocity by correlating Cd, d⁎, and shape descriptors, with lower absolute error (8.8%) than those (15.4-77.2%) of existing models.