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Papers
61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Influence of the Presence of a Nano-Sized Filler in the Generation of Microplastics from Polypropylene Nanocomposites
ClearRole of Structural Morphology of Commodity Polymers in Microplastics and Nanoplastics Formation: Fragmentation, Effects and Associated Toxicity in the Aquatic Environment
This review examines how the structural morphology and chemical composition of commodity polymers influence the formation and environmental behaviour of microplastics and nanoplastics, arguing that chemical degradation pathways have been largely overlooked in favour of purely physical abrasion explanations for plastic fragmentation.
Nanoplastic Generation from Secondary PE Microplastics: Microorganism-Induced Fragmentation
Researchers found that microorganisms accelerate the fragmentation of secondary polyethylene microplastics into nanoplastics through enzymatic and mechanical processes, suggesting biological activity is a significant driver of nanoplastic generation in marine environments.
Degradation of polypropylene : proportion of microplastics formed and assessment of their density.
Researchers quantified the proportion of microplastics generated during UV-driven degradation of polypropylene and assessed changes in chemical composition caused by photooxidation. The study found that UV exposure progressively fragments polypropylene and alters its surface chemistry, affecting subsequent environmental behavior and toxicity.
Fragmentation of polymer nanocomposites: modulation by dry and wet weathering, fractionation, and nanomaterial filler
Environmental weathering of polymer nanocomposites — plastics embedded with carbon nanotubes, graphene, or inorganic nanoparticles — causes them to fragment and release both microplastics and engineered nanomaterials. This dual release creates complex mixtures of contaminants with unknown combined effects on ecosystems and human health.
Degradation of polypropylene : proportion of microplastics formed and assessment of their density.
This study quantified microplastic formation during UV degradation of polypropylene and characterized the chemical changes in the polymer structure caused by photooxidation. UV exposure was shown to generate new particles and alter chemical composition in ways that may change microplastic toxicity and environmental behavior.
Evaluation of the degradation from micro to nanoplastics from biodegradable bags in marine conditions
Researchers evaluated how biodegradable plastic bags degrade into micro- and nanoplastics under environmental conditions, comparing them to conventional plastics. The study found that even biodegradable materials generate persistent micro- and nanoplastic particles under real-world conditions.
Microbial Plastic Degradation: A Solution or a Pollution Problem?
Researchers examined how polymer microstructure influences the formation of micro- and nanoplastics, highlighting that microbial degradation may be an underappreciated driver of plastic fragmentation and urging caution before widely promoting microbial mitigation technologies.
Nanoplastics impact on marine biota: A review
Researchers reviewed the emerging toxicological literature on nanoplastics in marine ecosystems, distinguishing primary nanoplastics (manufactured at nanoscale) from secondary nanoplastics (fragmented from larger debris), and summarizing how nanoscale size changes particle reactivity and bioavailability in ways that differ substantially from their macro- and microscale counterparts.
Polyethylene plastic degradation: The dual pathways from macroplastics to nanoplastics
Researchers traced the dual degradation pathways of polyethylene from large plastic items down to microplastics and eventually nanoplastics, mapping both mechanical fragmentation and chemical oxidation routes. Understanding the full breakdown continuum helps quantify how much of the plastic mass ends up as invisible nanoscale particles.
Size-dependent long-term weathering converting floating polypropylene macro- and microplastics into nanoplastics in coastal seawater environments
Researchers found that floating polypropylene plastics of different sizes undergo long-term weathering in coastal seawater, with particle size decreasing by over 99% after accelerated UV exposure, demonstrating a size-dependent pathway for converting macroplastics into nanoplastics.
Elaborating more realistic model microplastics by simulating polypropylene's environmental ageing
This study developed more realistic model microplastics by simulating the environmental aging of polypropylene, producing laboratory particles with surface chemistry, roughness, and density closer to field-collected environmental microplastics.
Evaluation of the degradation from micro to nanoplastics from biodegradable bags in marine conditions
Researchers evaluated how biodegradable plastic bags degrade from the micro to nano scale under environmental conditions, testing whether commercial biodegradable plastics fully decompose or generate persistent nanoplastic particles. Results showed biodegradable bags produced nanoplastic particles during degradation, challenging the assumption that biodegradable label guarantees complete environmental breakdown.
Synthesis of model polyethylene particles for the study of nanoplastics in the oceans
Researchers synthesized model polyethylene nanoplastic particles to serve as reference materials for studying the behavior and fate of nanoplastics in ocean environments, addressing the gap created by the lack of standardized particles representative of naturally fragmented marine plastic debris.
Novel Acumens into Biodegradation: Impact of Nanomaterials and Their Contribution
This review examines how nanomaterials can enhance the biodegradation of pollutants, including plastics, in the environment. Nanomaterial-assisted biodegradation offers a potential strategy for accelerating the breakdown of plastic waste before it fragments into microplastics.
Environmental Degradation of Plastic Composites with Natural Fillers—A Review
Researchers examined the environmental degradation of polymer composites containing natural fillers, finding that exposure to outdoor conditions accelerates biodegradation of natural components and alters the mechanical properties of the composite material. The degradation process can generate microplastic fragments as the matrix breaks down.
Environmental Fate, Behavior, and Risk Management Approaches of Nanoplastics in the Environment
Researchers reviewed the environmental fate, behavior, and risk management of nanoplastics, which are plastic particles smaller than one micrometer. The study suggests that nanoplastics may pose greater environmental and health risks than larger microplastics due to their nanoscale properties, though significant knowledge gaps remain about their transport, transformation, and long-term ecological effects.
Nano-plastics and their analytical characterisation and fate in the marine environment: From source to sea
Researchers reviewed the sources, environmental fate, organism interactions, and analytical detection methods for nano-sized plastic polymers in the marine environment, concluding that nanoplastics pose the greatest ecological risk among plastic size fractions and that standardized analytical protocols for nanoplastic characterization are urgently needed.
Nanostructural changes in commodity polyethylene during environmental exposure
Researchers studied how polyethylene plastic packaging degrades at the molecular level during environmental exposure, finding that structural stress built up during manufacturing makes the material more prone to fragmentation. Understanding how plastics break apart is key to predicting microplastic generation rates.
Obtaining and Preliminary Characterization of Some Polyethylene Composites with Nickel-Silver Ferrite Filler
Researchers developed composite materials by blending low-density polyethylene (LDPE) with a metallic filler to create plastic composites with improved physical and dielectric properties. While this paper is about plastic material development rather than pollution, understanding how plastic composites behave under environmental conditions is relevant to predicting their fragmentation into microplastics.
Nanoplastics in aquatic environments: Origin, separation and characterization: Review
This review covers the origins, separation methods, and characterization of nanoplastics in aquatic environments. Nanoplastics (1–100 nm) are particularly concerning because their tiny size gives them a large surface area for adsorbing pollutants and allows them to penetrate biological barriers more easily than larger microplastics.
The Challenge of the Analysis of Nanoplastics in the Environment: Current Status and Perspectives
This review examines the analytical challenges of detecting and characterising nanoplastics in environmental samples, presenting the state of the art in size determination, chemical composition analysis, and quantification techniques, as well as a survey of nanoplastic model materials used in the literature.
Nanoplastics: A Complex, Polluting Terra Incognita
This study discusses nanoplastics as a complex and poorly understood class of environmental pollutants, highlighting the significant knowledge gaps in understanding their sources, fate, and ecological impacts.
Synthesis of model polyethylene particles for the study of nanoplastics in the oceans
Researchers developed a synthesis method for model polyethylene particles designed to replicate the physicochemical properties of naturally degraded nanoplastics in the ocean, addressing the need for environmentally representative reference materials for studying nanoplastic behavior in marine systems.
Facile nanoplastics formation from macro and microplastics in aqueous media
This study examined how nanoplastics form from larger macro- and microplastics in aqueous environments, finding that mechanical and photochemical processes in water accelerate fragmentation beyond what occurs on dry land. The findings help explain nanoplastic abundance in aquatic systems and improve models of plastic environmental fate.