0
Article ? AI-assigned paper type based on the abstract. Classification may not be perfect — flag errors using the feedback button. Tier 2 ? Original research — experimental, observational, or case-control study. Direct primary evidence. Nanoplastics Remediation Sign in to save

Adsorption behavior of triclosan on polystyrene nanoplastics: The roles of particle size, surface functionalization, and environmental factors

The Science of The Total Environment 2023 30 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 50 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Chunzhao Chen, Chenxi Sun, Chenxi Sun, Bin Wang, Zhiguo Zhang, Gang Yu, Gang Yu

Summary

Researchers examined how triclosan, an antimicrobial compound common in personal care products, adsorbs onto polystyrene nanoplastics of different sizes and surface chemistries, finding that smaller particles and functionalized surfaces (with carboxyl or amine groups) bind more triclosan, with pH and salinity further modulating uptake — suggesting nanoplastics can serve as mobile carriers for this contaminant.

Nanoplastics (NPs) contribute substantially to the transport of waterborne pollutants. Triclosan (TCS) has a high potential to contact with NPs because of their prevalence in natural waters. Herein, this study investigated the adsorption behavior of TCS on differently sized and functionalized polystyrene (PS) NPs. The effects of environmental factors such as pH, salinity, and dissolved organic matter (DOM) were also evaluated. Results suggest that the adsorption equilibrium constant (k) of TCS in pristine PSNP suspensions followed the order as: PSNPs-50 nm (4.39 L·g) > PSNPs-100 nm (2.78 L·g) > PSNPs-200 nm (2.59 L·g) > PSNPs-500 nm (1.36 L·g) ≈ PSNPs-900 nm (1.36 L·g). For the functionalized PSNPs (i.e., PSNPs-COOH, PSNPs-NH), the values of specific surface area normalized k called k, were higher than those of pristine PSNPs. Meanwhile, TCS adsorption on two functionalized PSNPs remained stable and then decreased as salinity increased, while an opposite trend was observed toward pristine PSNPs. All these suggested that physicochemical properties of PSNPs (e.g., particle size and surface functional groups) are important factors influencing their adsorption capacity. When the solution pH raised, the adsorbed amounts of TCS on all tested PSNPs prone to decline. However, DOM only affected the adsorption behavior of PSNPs-50 nm, probably owing to its aggregation with tiny PSNPs and the induced secondary adsorption.

Sign in to start a discussion.

More Papers Like This

Article Tier 2

Effects of particle size and solution chemistry on Triclosan sorption on polystyrene microplastic

Researchers characterized how the antimicrobial compound triclosan adsorbs onto polystyrene microplastics, finding that sorption is driven primarily by hydrophobic interactions and is highest at acidic pH, while temperature, ionic strength, and co-occurring heavy metals had little effect — suggesting polystyrene acts as an environmental carrier for triclosan.

Article Tier 2

Does triclosan adsorption on polystyrene nanoplastics modify the toxicity of single contaminants?

Researchers investigated whether triclosan adsorption onto polystyrene nanoplastics modifies the toxicity of each contaminant individually, using a multi-tiered approach to assess how nanoplastic carrier effects alter the combined hazard of this common antimicrobial agent in aquatic environments.

Article Tier 2

Effect of microplastic size on the adsorption behavior and mechanism of triclosan on polyvinyl chloride

The adsorption of triclosan (an antimicrobial compound) onto polyvinyl chloride microplastics was found to depend strongly on microplastic particle size, with smaller particles adsorbing more triclosan per unit mass due to their higher surface-area-to-volume ratio. This size-dependent sorption behavior influences the potential for microplastics to transport antimicrobial chemicals in aquatic environments.

Article Tier 2

Insights into the interaction mechanism of ofloxacin and functionalized nano-polystyrene.

This study investigated how the antibiotic ofloxacin interacts with functionalized polystyrene nanoplastics, finding that surface charge and functional groups on the nanoplastics strongly influenced binding strength and mechanisms. The results improve understanding of how nanoplastics can act as carriers for antibiotics in the environment, potentially altering their fate and biological effects.

Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of triclosan by different microplastics and the impact of water chemistry

Researchers investigated how triclosan — an antimicrobial compound — adsorbs onto four types of microplastics under varying water chemistry conditions. They found hydrophobic partitioning was the dominant adsorption mechanism, with solution pH, ionic strength, and dissolved organic matter all influencing uptake capacity.

Share this paper