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Ageing conditions of tire wear particles alter the effects of their leachates on soil
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Researchers investigated how mechanical, thermal, and UV ageing of tire wear particles (TWP) alters the effects of their leachates on nine soil parameters, finding that aged TWP leachates caused considerably greater soil disruption than non-aged particles, with each ageing type producing distinct patterns of change in microbial activity and physicochemical properties.
Tire wear particles (TWP) are a complex mixture of rubber and chemical additives, and the release of these chemicals from TWP can be influenced by the physical properties and chemical composition of TWP as well as the degradation or ageing conditions of the particles. Given that soil is considered the largest reservoir of TWP emitted into the environment, we established a soil laboratory experiment using TWP leachates with three different ageing treatments (mechanical-, thermal-, and UV irradiation), and measured nine soil parameters (soil microbial activities and physicochemical properties) to investigate how ageing conditions influence the effects of TWP leachates on soil. We found that leachates from aged TWP induced considerable effects on soil parameters while non-aged treatment significantly influenced only one soil parameter. We found that the leachates of the mechanical-ageing treatments significantly decreased β-1,4-N-acetyl-glucosaminidase activity and C/N ratio, and the thermal-ageing treatment slightly increased litter decomposition but largely decreased water stable aggregates and pH. UV-ageing treatments decreased 1,4-N-acetyl-glucosaminidase activity, water stable aggregates and C/N ratio. TWP leachates of different ageing treatments induced distinct effects compared to leachates from pristine TWP, and each ageing treatment showed different response patterns in different soil parameters. This has further refined our knowledge of the ecological impacts of TWP, and highlighted the necessity of considering ageing condition as a crucial factor investigating the environmental effects of TWP.
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Researchers examined how UV exposure and natural aging change the ability of tire wear particles to release polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in soil. They found that UV aging increased the surface reactivity of the particles and altered how readily these toxic compounds could be absorbed by living organisms. The study suggests that weathered tire particles in roadside soils may pose greater health risks than fresh ones.
A critical review of tire wear particles aging and ecotoxicological consequences in terrestrial environments: Insights into environmentally persistent free radicals
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This review synthesizes evidence on how tire wear particles age in terrestrial environments and the resulting ecological consequences. Researchers found that UV-induced aging generates environmentally persistent free radicals and reactive oxygen species that amplify soil toxicity, while biodegradation may reduce some risks. The study highlights that characterizing aged tire wear particles remains difficult due to their compositional complexity and calls for standardized analytical methods.
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Researchers reviewed how environmental aging — via photooxidation, mechanical abrasion, and biodegradation — transforms tire wear particles by increasing surface area and polarity, promoting additive leaching and the formation of reactive free radicals, collectively amplifying ecological toxicity beyond what fresh particles alone would cause.
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Tire wear particles—a major source of microplastics—were found to become increasingly toxic to soil nematodes over time as chemical additives leach out. The time-dependent toxicity means that older, weathered tire particles in soil may pose greater ecological risks than freshly deposited ones.
Assessing the Biodegradability of Tire Tread Particles and Influencing Factors
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