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Effect of Microplastics on the Environmental Fate of Atrazine in Soil: Adsorption and Dissipation
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Polyethylene, PVC, and polybutylene succinate microplastics significantly increased the adsorption of the herbicide atrazine in two soil types and prolonged its persistence — with half-lives stretching up to 82 days — while also disrupting soil enzyme activity. This is important because it demonstrates that microplastic contamination in agricultural soils compounds the environmental risk of pesticides by making them more persistent and bioavailable.
The accumulation of microplastics (MPs) in agricultural soils and atrazine in agricultural soils creates compound pollution that severely threatens soil health. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of polyethylene (PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and polybutylene succinate (PBS) on the adsorption and degradation of atrazine in yellow-brown and black soil. Batch adsorption kinetic and isotherm experiments were conducted in two distinct soils amended with MPs. A 90-day degradation experiment was performed to monitor atrazine persistence and the activities of key soil enzymes. The adsorption process was best described by the pseudo-second-order model and the Freundlich isotherm model, suggesting dominant chemisorption and multilayer adsorption on heterogeneous surfaces of the soil–MP composites. All MPs significantly enhanced the adsorption capacity for atrazine (6.80–39.93 mg kg−1), with the order PBS > PE > PVC. Furthermore, the degradation of atrazine was impeded by all MPs, with PVC exhibiting the strongest inhibitory effect. The half-life of atrazine ranges from 22.97 to 81.76 days in two soils. The presence of MPs also influenced soil enzyme activities and the effects varied by MP type and soil property. These results demonstrate that MPs can modify the adsorption and persistence of atrazine in soil, thereby increasing its environmental risk. This study provides valuable insights for the long-term ecological risk assessment of co-existing MPs and pesticide pollution in terrestrial environments.
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Effects of microplastics on the environmental behaviors of the herbicide atrazine in soil: Dissipation, adsorption, and bioconcentration
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Researchers examined how the presence of microplastics in soil affects the behavior of the herbicide atrazine, including how quickly it breaks down and how much is absorbed by plants. They found that microplastics reduced the herbicide's half-life in soil, increased its adsorption to soil particles, and significantly boosted its uptake into plant tissues. The study suggests that microplastic contamination in agricultural soils could change how pesticides behave, potentially increasing crop contamination.
Effect of Microplastic Coexistence Conditions on the Environmental Behavior of Atrazine on Soil
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Researchers investigated the effect of polyethylene microplastic presence on the environmental behavior of the herbicide atrazine in black and black calcium soils, finding that microplastics increased atrazine adsorption by up to 1.21-fold and that Freundlich isotherms best described the adsorption dynamics.
Microplastics mulch film affects the environmental behavior of adsorption and degradation of pesticide residues in soil
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Researchers tested how new, aged, and biodegradable polyethylene mulch film microplastics affect the adsorption and degradation of the pesticides imidacloprid and flumioxazin in soil. All three MP types slowed initial pesticide adsorption and extended the time to reach equilibrium, with aged MPs showing the greatest effect, potentially prolonging pesticide persistence in agricultural soils.
Interactions between microplastics from agricultural films and soil in regulating atrazine adsorption: A mechanistic and environmental relevance study.
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Lab tests mixed microplastics from weathered or new plastic farm films into soil to see how they affect the soil's ability to hold the pesticide atrazine. Weathered plastic particles, which had rougher surfaces and oxygen-containing chemical groups, bound atrazine more strongly than new plastic, with particle size, amount of plastic, and aging level all affecting the results.
Adsorption-desorption of propyrisulfuron in six typical agricultural soils of China: Kinetics, thermodynamics, influence of 38 environmental factors and its mechanisms
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This study investigated how the common herbicide propyrisulfuron behaves in six different Chinese agricultural soils, and notably found that microplastic contamination in the soil was one of 38 environmental factors influencing how much of the herbicide was adsorbed. The herbicide bound tightly enough to soil particles that residues could persist and potentially leach into groundwater with continued use. The incidental finding about microplastic influence on herbicide adsorption points to a broader issue: microplastics in farmland soils may alter the behavior of pesticides and other agrochemicals, with implications for both crop safety and water quality.
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