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Papers
20 resultsShowing papers similar to Electrification of wind-blown microplastics and its implication for transport of floating microplastics in air
ClearIs transport of microplastics different from mineral particles? Idealized wind tunnel studies on polyethylene microspheres
Wind tunnel experiments revealed that plastic (polyethylene) microspheres behave differently from mineral dust particles when transported by wind, particularly on hydrophobic surfaces, where plastic particles detach and become airborne more readily. Particle-to-particle collisions were found to both assist and impede detachment. These findings help explain why microplastics are found in remote atmospheric environments and improve models for predicting how far plastic particles can travel through the air from pollution sources.
Electric forces can enhance the emission of microplastics into air
Researchers discovered that strong electric fields, like those generated during dust storms, can lift microplastic particles off surfaces and launch them into the air. Through calculations and lab experiments, they showed that the electrical threshold needed to lift microplastics depends on the plastic type, shape, and humidity levels. The findings reveal a previously overlooked mechanism by which microplastics can become airborne and spread through the atmosphere.
Is transport of microplastics different from that of mineral dust? Results from idealized wind tunnel studies
Researchers conducted wind tunnel experiments to examine the detachment and transport behavior of microplastics ranging from 38 to 125 um in diameter from idealized substrates, comparing their aerodynamic behavior to the well-established literature on mineral dust transport. The study identified key differences in microplastic detachment mechanisms relevant to understanding long-range atmospheric dispersal of plastic particles.
Influence of meteorological conditions on atmospheric microplastic transport and deposition
This review summarizes how weather conditions like wind, rain, and temperature affect how microplastics travel through the atmosphere and settle back to Earth. Wind can carry microplastics across long distances between land and ocean, creating a global cycle of airborne plastic pollution that contributes to the microplastics we inevitably breathe in every day.
Is plastic dust different from mineral dust? Results from idealized wind tunnel experiments.
Researchers conducted wind tunnel experiments to compare how plastic particles of different sizes detach from flat surfaces in wind compared to mineral dust particles. Plastic particles required higher wind speeds to become airborne than mineral dust of similar size, likely due to shape differences. These findings inform atmospheric transport models for predicting how far and how much microplastic can be carried by wind across the landscape.
Vertical concentrations gradients and transport of airborne microplastics in wind tunnel experiments
Wind tunnel experiments tracked how tiny airborne microplastic particles (about half a micrometer in diameter) distribute vertically in moving air, finding conditions under which they can remain suspended and travel long distances. These results help explain how microplastics reach remote environments like mountain peaks and Arctic ice, and contribute to models of human inhalation exposure in urban and rural settings.
Adsorption of plastics by static electricity for the purpose of collecting microplastics on beaches
Researchers developed a microplastic collector that uses electrostatic adsorption via a Van de Graaff generator to attract negatively charged microplastics from beach sand using Coulomb force. Laboratory experiments validated the device's ability to separate micrometer-scale plastic particles from sand, proposing static electricity as a practical new method for marine beach microplastic collection.
Tracing the horizontal transport of microplastics on rough surfaces
Wind tunnel experiments showed that microplastics of different shapes are transported horizontally across rough surfaces at wind speeds above threshold values, with flatter and lighter particles moving farther per wind impulse, providing empirical data for modeling atmospheric microplastic dispersal across terrestrial landscapes.
Effects of Shape and Size on Microplastic Atmospheric Settling Velocity
Researchers measured atmospheric settling and horizontal drift velocities of various microplastic shapes and sizes in controlled settling chambers, providing empirical data needed to improve atmospheric transport models that explain how microplastics reach remote environments.
Physical characteristics of microplastic particles and potential for global atmospheric transport: A meta-analysis
This meta-analysis pools data from multiple studies to examine the physical characteristics of airborne microplastics and how they travel through the atmosphere. The findings confirm that microplastics can be transported globally by wind, meaning people everywhere are breathing in these particles regardless of how far they live from pollution sources.
Vertical concentrations gradients and transport of airborne microplastics in wind tunnel experiments
Researchers used a wind tunnel to study the vertical transport and concentration gradients of airborne polystyrene microplastics (0.51 micrometers diameter) injected at different heights under neutral atmospheric stability conditions. Results showed that maximum particle concentrations shifted toward the surface due to gravitational settling, and flux-gradient similarity analysis revealed the conditions necessary for long-range atmospheric microplastic transport.
Entrainment and horizontal atmospheric transport of microplastics from soil
Researchers investigated the mechanisms by which microplastics become entrained from soil into the atmosphere, finding that wind-driven processes can transport plastic particles horizontally near the ground surface, establishing agricultural soils as a significant source of airborne microplastics.
Geometric Form and Density Govern Microplastic Particle Kinetics During Aeolian Transport
Scientists studied how tiny plastic particles move through the air and found that they travel faster and farther than natural particles like sand. This means microplastics can spread much more easily through wind to remote areas where people live, including places far from pollution sources. Understanding how these plastics move through the air is important because it helps explain why microplastics are showing up everywhere on Earth, potentially affecting human health through the air we breathe.
Cation–π Interaction and Salinity Regulate the Bubble-Mediated Transport of Microplastics in the Presence of Aromatic Dissolved Organic Matter
Researchers combined single-molecule force spectroscopy and bulk transport experiments to show that aromatic dissolved organic matter forms an eco-corona on polystyrene microplastics via cation-π interactions, weakening bubble-mediated ejection and promoting aggregation in seawater, while polar PLA microplastics remain colloidally stable and more amenable to vertical atmospheric transport.
Influence of microplastics on small-scale soil surface roughness and implications for wind transport of microplastic particles
Researchers investigated how microplastics mixed into soil affect surface roughness at small scales, finding that microplastics altered surface texture in ways that could increase soil susceptibility to wind erosion and promote atmospheric transport of microplastic particles.
The effects of sediment properties on the aeolian abrasion and surface characteristics of microplastics
This study used laboratory wind tunnel experiments to examine how microplastics are physically abraded when transported by wind alongside sand and soil particles, testing angular, sub-rounded, and rounded sediment grains over extended periods. The abrasion altered the surface chemistry and texture of the plastic particles in ways that could affect how they interact with pollutants and organisms in the environment. The work reveals that wind transport does not merely move microplastics — it transforms them, potentially changing their environmental hazard profile.
Macroplastic surface characteristics change during wind abrasion
Laboratory wind tunnel experiments showed that wind-driven abrasion of macroplastics on sandy surfaces produces distinct surface features and generates secondary microplastic particles, demonstrating that wind erosion is a meaningful pathway for plastic fragmentation in arid and coastal environments.
Microplastic aging and adsorption in the atmosphere, and their associated impacts on various spheres of the earth: A review
This review examines how microplastics travel through the atmosphere and change during transport due to sunlight, wind, and interactions with other air pollutants. These aging processes alter the surface chemistry of microplastics, affecting which toxic chemicals they can absorb and carry to new locations. The atmospheric pathway is a major route for spreading microplastic contamination globally, including into remote areas and into the air people breathe.
Atmospheric microplastic deposition in an urban environment and an evaluation of transport
Researchers measured microplastic deposition in central London and found contamination in all samples, with rates ranging from 575 to 1,008 particles per square meter per day. Fibrous microplastics made up 92% of the particles, and 15 different polymer types were identified. Wind analysis revealed different source areas for fibrous and non-fibrous airborne microplastics, providing the first evidence that the atmosphere is a significant pathway for microplastic pollution in urban areas.
Atmospheric transport dynamics of microplastic fibres
Researchers examined the atmospheric transport dynamics of microplastic fibres within boundary layer flows, comparing their motion to mineral grain transport and finding key differences in behaviour that have important implications for modelling the long-range atmospheric dispersal of microplastics to remote and rural locations.