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Physicochemical Determinants of Nanoplastic Fate and Advanced Removal Dynamics
Summary
This review paper looks at how tiny plastic particles (nanoplastics)—too small to see, from broken-down plastic waste—move through the environment and how their size, shape, and surface properties affect where they end up and how easily they can be filtered out of water or soil. It matters because these particles can carry other pollutants, persist in nature, and potentially enter our bodies through water, food, or air, so understanding what makes them harder or easier to remove helps scientists design better cleanup methods before they reach us.
This chapter per the authors analyzes the physicochemical determinants governing nanoplastic transport behavior, environmental partitioning, bioavailability, and remediation performance across complex ecological matrices. Nanoplastics are heterogeneous colloidal systems where particle size, morphology, surface charge, density, hydrophobicity, and functionalization regulate aggregation kinetics, interfacial interactions, contaminant adsorption, and environmental persistence under variable conditions. The analysis further examines how these properties influence efficiency and selectivity of physical, chemical, biological, and hybrid remediation technologies. Analytical constraints in nanoscale characterization, compositional heterogeneity, and remediation-related ecological trade-offs are critically assessed alongside predictive computational models for fate estimation and removal optimization. By integrating environmental chemistry with remediation dynamics, the chapter advances a systems-oriented framework for nanoplastic behavior and mitigation within One Health exposure landscapes.