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Chemical reactivity of weathered nanoplastics and their interactions with heavy metals
Summary
Researchers examined the chemical reactivity of weathered nanoplastics following abiotic and biotic degradation processes, finding that weathering substantially alters the surface chemistry of nanoplastics and enhances their capacity to interact with and facilitate the transformation of legacy heavy metal contaminants in the environment.
Nanoplastics (NPs) are chemically reactive following abiotic and biotic weathering processes. These weathered NPs have the potential to facilitate the transformation of legacy contaminants, such as heavy metals.
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