We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Microplastics as a dynamic source of dissolved organic carbon: Desorption kinetics, thermodynamic drivers, and potential mitigation.
AI summary Read the abstract
Microplastics don't just soak up chemicals from water, they can also release trapped carbon-based compounds back out, especially when exposed to heat, and this happens fastest within the first hour. The good news: boiling water appeared to substantially cut down these released compounds in this study, hinting that something as simple as boiling your water might help reduce your exposure to microplastic-related chemical leaching, though more research is needed to confirm this works reliably in real drinking water.
Research on microplastics (MPs) has focused on adsorption, while largely ignoring desorption as a route for releasing sequestered organics into aquatic systems. This study examined the desorption of organic carbon from virgin and preloaded microplastics using model oxygenated organic chemicals (ethanol, acetonitrile, and acetone) and a temperature range of 25-55 °C, together with a separate open-vessel boiling experiment at 100 °C, to evaluate their influence on dissolved organic carbon (DOC) release. The results showed that dissolved organic carbon concentrations increased rapidly during the initial hour. Increasing the temperature from 25 to 55 °C increased dissolved organic carbon release by approximately 1.7-fold compared with the 25 °C treatment. Preloaded microplastics desorption exhibited a fast initial release (0-1 hour), with the highest apparent DOC release percentage of 98.64% observed for acetone-conditioned microplastics. Kinetic modeling indicated that DOC desorption was well described by pseudo-first-order and Elovich models (R > 0.95). Equilibrium data were fitted to the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms, indicating apparent finite-capacity behavior and heterogeneous surface interactions. In the separate open-vessel boiling experiment at 100 °C, bulk DOC decreased by approximately 70%; however, this decrease coincided with substantial evaporative water loss and therefore cannot be unequivocally attributed to degradation or removal of MP-derived carbon. The characterization of microplastics using scanning electron microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller analysis indicated treatment-associated changes in MP surface morphology, spectral features, and surface area. Overall, microplastics may act as secondary sources of DOC under controlled chemical-conditioning and thermal-stress conditions. Thermal exposure (boiling at 100 °C) substantially reduces measurable DOC and MP-associated carbon, suggesting a potential mitigation route for MP-derived organic carbon in water.
More Papers Like This
Potable water boiling can induce havoc in the water quality management arena due to the presence of microplastics
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers reviewed growing evidence that microplastics and nanoplastics in drinking water present serious health and management challenges, warning that boiling water — the most widely used low-cost purification method — may actually worsen contamination by causing plastics to leach harmful chemicals, threatening safe drinking water access for billions of people.
Leaching of carbon, metals, and additives from microplastics to water
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers soaked a range of consumer plastic microplastics in water for 12 weeks and found that most released substantial dissolved organic carbon, metals including calcium, iron, and zinc, and dozens of chemical additives — with leaching rates highest in the first few weeks and varying by polymer type.
Microplastics in potable water of a coastal city of Bangladesh: Efficacy of boiling as a point-of-use mitigation strategy
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers quantified microplastic contamination across three domestic water sources in Khulna City, Bangladesh — pond, tap, and groundwater — finding MPs in all samples and demonstrating that boiling reduces concentrations by over 70%, with reduction efficiency strongly correlated with water hardness due to calcium carbonate co-precipitation trapping particles at the vessel bottom.
Warming exponentially stimulates photoleaching of dissolved organic matter from multiple microplastics
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers quantified dissolved organic matter release from four common marine microplastics (PE, PP, PET, PVC) under UV light at temperatures ranging from 10–35°C, finding that warming exponentially increased photoleaching rates — with implications for how climate change may accelerate microplastic-derived carbon cycling in ocean surface waters.
Microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter and its biogeochemical behaviors in aquatic environments: A review
AI summary Read the abstract
This review examines how microplastics release dissolved organic matter (MP-DOM) as they break down in water, and how these released chemicals affect water ecosystems. MP-DOM can interact with other pollutants and alter carbon cycling in natural waters, with the type and amount varying based on plastic composition and weathering conditions. Understanding what microplastics release into water as they degrade is important because these dissolved chemicals may have their own toxic effects on aquatic life and water quality.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.