Article
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Tier 2
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Original research — experimental, observational, or case-control study. Direct primary evidence.
Environmental Sources
Marine & Wildlife
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Calcite carbonate sinks low-density plastic debris in open oceans
Nature Communications2024
9 citations
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Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count.
Score: 45
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0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Lei Mai
Xiangfei Sun,
Xiangfei Sun,
Yanxu Zhang,
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Xiangfei Sun,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Xiangfei Sun,
Lei Mai
Yanxu Zhang,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Meng-Yi Xie,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Yanxu Zhang,
Yanxu Zhang,
Xiangfei Sun,
Meng-Yi Xie,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Xiangfei Sun,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Yanxu Zhang,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Xiangfei Sun,
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Yanxu Zhang,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Lei Mai
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Yanxu Zhang,
Eddy Y. Zeng,
Yanxu Zhang,
Lei Mai
Lei Mai
Summary
Researchers found that calcite precipitation, a natural biogeochemical process in the ocean, causes low-density plastic debris to sink by coating particles with mineral layers that increase their density. The finding identifies a previously unrecognized mechanism for removing buoyant plastics from the ocean surface.
Study Type
Environmental
The vertical settling of plastic debris in oceans is poorly understood. A large share of low-density microplastics (LDMPs) are largely absent from sea surfaces. The present study employs a model that considers the potential of an overlooked microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) process and new motion equations for irregular LDMPs. Here we show that the motion of LDMPs in the present model, exhibiting a damped oscillation pattern, is quite different from that in biofouling models. Furthermore, LDMPs in the size range of 10-200 µm are most likely to gain sufficient density at the biofouling/MICP stage to independently sink to the ocean floor with relatively small drag coefficients, potentially explaining the selective enrichment of LDMPs in the oceanic sediment. The size and shape exhibit strong non-linear effects on the settling patterns of LDMPs. Overall, the present study highlights the importance of calcite-mediated sinking of LDMPs in open oceans.