Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Impact of Minerals (Ferrihydrite and Goethite) and Their Organo-Mineral Complexes on Fate and Transport of Nanoplastics in the Riverine and Terrestrial Environments

Researchers studied how common iron minerals and their organic matter complexes affect the movement and fate of nanoplastics in river and soil environments. The study found that pure minerals had higher sorption capacity for nanoplastics than their organo-mineral counterparts, and goethite-based systems caused greater aggregation and retention of nanoplastics, suggesting that soil mineral composition plays an important role in nanoplastic transport.

2025 Environmental Science & Technology 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics interaction with feldspar and weathering originated secondary minerals (kaolinite and gibbsite) in the riverine environment

Researchers studied how nanoplastics interact with common river minerals (feldspar, kaolinite, and gibbsite) in freshwater environments. Nanoplastics adsorbed onto mineral surfaces, with the type of mineral and water chemistry affecting how strongly they stuck. Understanding these interactions helps predict how nanoplastics move through rivers and how available they are to living organisms.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Fate and transport of nanoplastics in complex natural aquifer media: Effect of particle size and surface functionalization

Researchers used batch and column experiments in a natural sandy aquifer to show that nanoplastic transport is governed primarily by organic matter coatings rather than particle size or surface chemistry alone, with suspended organic matter increasing mobility while dissolved organic matter reduces it — findings that improve predictions of nanoplastic contamination in agricultural groundwater systems.

2019 The Science of The Total Environment 186 citations
Article Tier 2

Molecular Insights into the Synergistic Inhibition of Microplastics-Derived Dissolved Organic Matter and Anions on the Transformation of Ferrihydrite

Researchers investigated how dissolved organic matter released from microplastics combines with naturally occurring ions to affect iron mineral transformations in the environment. They found that microplastic-derived organic matter and ions like phosphate work together to strongly inhibit the conversion of a reactive iron mineral called ferrihydrite. The findings matter because these iron minerals play key roles in nutrient cycling and pollutant fate in soils and waterways.

2025 Environmental Science & Technology 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Deposition behaviors of carboxyl-modified polystyrene nanoplastics with goethite in aquatic environment: Effects of solution chemistry and organic macromolecules

Researchers systematically measured how pH, ions, and dissolved organic molecules affect the settling of carboxylated nanoplastics onto the iron mineral goethite, finding that higher pH, multivalent anions, and organic macromolecules (especially alginate) strongly inhibit deposition through electrostatic repulsion and steric hindrance.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Influence of magnetite and its weathering originated maghemite and hematite minerals on sedimentation and transport of nanoplastics in the aqueous and subsurface environments

Researchers compared how three iron oxide minerals — magnetite, maghemite, and hematite — affect nanoplastic sorption and transport in aqueous and subsurface environments, finding that magnetite's smaller size, positive surface charge, and higher surface hydroxyl density make it the most effective at capturing nanoplastics and limiting their mobility in river water-saturated sand columns.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 19 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactions between Iron Minerals and Dissolved Organic Matter Derived from Microplastics Inhibited the Ferrihydrite Transformation as Revealed at the Molecular Scale

Researchers studied how dissolved organic matter released from degrading microplastics interacts with iron minerals in the environment. They found that this microplastic-derived organic matter inhibited the natural transformation of ferrihydrite, an important iron mineral in soil and water systems. The study reveals that microplastic breakdown products can alter fundamental geochemical processes, potentially affecting nutrient cycling and pollutant behavior.

2024 Environmental Science & Technology 33 citations
Article Tier 2

Both nanoplastic and iron mineral types determine their heteroaggregation: Aggregation kinetics and interface process

Researchers measured how four types of nanoplastics aggregate with iron minerals and found that surface chemistry drives the outcome — with PMMA forming the strongest heteroaggregates and carboxyl-modified particles the weakest — and that electron transfer from nanoplastics to hematite partially reduces iron, with implications for aquatic iron cycling.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of iron/aluminum (hydr)oxide and clay minerals on heteroaggregation and transport of nanoplastics in aquatic environment

Researchers examined how polystyrene nanoplastics interact with nine different minerals in aquatic environments, finding that positively charged iron and aluminum (hydr)oxide minerals readily form aggregates with nanoplastics through electrostatic and hydrophobic forces, while humic acid and shifting pH significantly suppress this aggregation.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 68 citations
Article Tier 2

Unveiling the crucial role of iron oxide transformation in simultaneous immobilization of nanoplastics and organic matter

Researchers tracked how nanoplastics become trapped during the transformation of dissolved iron into crystalline iron oxide minerals, finding that polystyrene nanoplastics become physically encased within forming crystals while humic acid stabilizes the system, creating a durable iron oxide-nanoplastic-organic matter composite that sequesters particles in sediments.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Charge mediated interaction of polystyrene nanoplastic (PSNP) with minerals in aqueous phase

Researchers investigated how polystyrene nanoplastics interact with common soil and sediment minerals, finding that positively charged iron oxide minerals (goethite and magnetite) strongly adsorb nanoplastics via electrostatic attraction and hydrogen bonding, while negatively charged clay minerals do not — providing mechanistic insight into how nanoplastics may accumulate in iron-rich soils and sediments.

2020 Water Research 177 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of particle size and oxide phase on microplastic transport through iron oxide-coated sand

Researchers studied how different types of iron oxide coatings on sand affect the movement of polystyrene microplastics through soil. They found that magnetite-coated sand retained the most microplastics, while goethite-coated sand retained the least, with results matching theoretical predictions. The findings suggest that naturally iron-rich soils could serve as effective barriers to prevent microplastic transport through groundwater systems.

2024 Water Research 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Deposition behaviors and interfacial interaction mechanism between carboxyl-modified polystyrene nanoplastics and magnetite in aquatic environment

This study examined how solution chemistry (ionic strength, pH) and organic matter influence the deposition behavior of carboxyl-modified polystyrene nanoplastics onto iron (hydr)oxide mineral surfaces in aquatic environments. The results revealed that organic matter and solution chemistry strongly govern NP-mineral interfacial interactions and nanoplastic transport in subsurface environments.

2024 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of microplastic-derived organic matter onto minerals

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) released from weathered microplastics was studied for its adsorption onto soil minerals, a process relevant to microplastic fate and potential contaminant transport. Microplastic-derived DOM adsorbed onto mineral surfaces, altering soil chemistry and potentially stabilizing or mobilizing other contaminants in soil-water systems.

2020 Water Research 152 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and Nanoplastics in Aquatic Environments: Aggregation, Deposition, and Enhanced Contaminant Transport

This review examined the aggregation, deposition, and transport of microplastics and nanoplastics in aquatic environments, synthesizing how particle properties and water chemistry govern their fate and mobility in rivers, lakes, and oceans.

2017 Environmental Science & Technology 2491 citations
Article Tier 2

Heteroaggregation of nanoplastic particles in the presence of inorganic colloids and natural organic matter

Nanoplastics were found to heteroaggregate extensively with inorganic colloids and natural organic matter in both freshwater and marine conditions, altering their size, surface charge, and settling behavior compared to pristine particles. The study demonstrates that nanoplastic behavior in natural waters is dominated by interactions with other environmental constituents rather than the intrinsic properties of the plastic alone.

2018 Environmental Science Nano 227 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics as carriers of organic pollutants in seawater-saturated porous media: a quantitative comparison of transport pathways

Researchers quantitatively compared transport pathways of non-polar organic pollutants carried by nanoplastics through seawater-saturated porous media, demonstrating that the carrier effect of nanoplastics is the primary mechanism inhibiting pollutant migration and enabling their co-transport in coastal and marine subsurface environments.

2025 Environmental Science Nano
Article Tier 2

Interplay between microplastics and natural organic matter in association with environmental processes

This review explores how microplastics interact with natural organic matter—the dissolved and particulate carbon that permeates soils and waterways—and how these interactions alter microplastic transport, surface chemistry, and biological availability. Because natural organic matter coats microplastics and changes their behavior, ignoring this interplay leads to underestimates of how far and how dangerously microplastics spread through ecosystems.

2026 Environmental Science and Pollution Research
Article Tier 2

Comparative effects of crystalline, poorly crystalline and freshly formed iron oxides on the colloidal properties of polystyrene microplastics

Researchers found that freshly formed iron oxides caused the greatest aggregation of polystyrene microplastics in water, with effects decreasing in the order: freshly formed iron oxide > ferrihydrite > goethite > haematite. The findings suggest that iron oxide copresence can delay microplastic transport or alter their environmental fate depending on pH and crystallinity of the mineral.

2022 Environmental Pollution 35 citations
Article Tier 2

Molecular-Scale Insights into the Surface Structural Transformation and Light-Driven Production of Reactive Oxygen Species of Goethite Induced by Microplastic-Derived Dissolved Organic Matter

Researchers investigated how dissolved organic matter released from degrading microplastics interacts with the iron mineral goethite and affects the production of reactive oxygen species under sunlight. They found that microplastic-derived organic matter behaves differently from natural organic matter, producing distinct patterns of chemical reactivity on mineral surfaces. The study reveals a previously unrecognized way that microplastic degradation products can alter environmental chemistry.

2025 Environmental Science & Technology 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Eco-Corona Dictates Mobility of Nanoplastics in Saturated Porous Media: The Critical Role of Preferential Binding of Macromolecules

The eco-corona that forms on nanoplastic surfaces through interaction with humic substances and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) was found to critically determine nanoplastic mobility through saturated porous media. Humic-coated nanoplastics showed greater mobility than EPS-coated ones, suggesting natural organic matter composition governs nanoplastic transport in groundwater systems.

2022 Environmental Science & Technology 58 citations
Article Tier 2

Molecular-ScaleInsights into the Surface StructuralTransformation and Light-Driven Production of Reactive Oxygen Speciesof Goethite Induced by Microplastic-Derived Dissolved Organic Matter

Researchers used molecular-scale analysis to investigate how microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter transforms the surface structure of goethite and alters its light-driven production of reactive oxygen species, revealing previously unclear interactions between plastic-derived organic matter and iron minerals.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Transport of polystyrene microplastics in bare and iron oxide-coated quartz sand: Effects of ionic strength, humic acid, and co-existing graphene oxide

Researchers investigated how graphene oxide nanoparticles and humic acid influence the transport of polystyrene microplastics through sand columns, comparing bare quartz sand with iron oxide-coated sand. They found that iron oxide-coated sand strongly retained microplastics regardless of other factors, while graphene oxide significantly promoted microplastic transport by increasing surface charge and creating steric barriers. The study suggests that the co-presence of nanomaterials and organic matter in the environment can significantly alter how microplastics move through soil and groundwater systems.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Crystallinity- dependent heteroaggregation and co-sedimentation between polystyrene nanoplastics and iron (hydro)oxides

Researchers found that the crystallinity of iron (hydro)oxide minerals strongly governs their tendency to aggregate with polystyrene nanoplastics in water — higher crystallinity produces more positive surface charges, stronger electrostatic attraction, and greater hydrogen bonding with nanoplastics, ultimately controlling how and where these combined particles settle in aquatic environments.

2025 Journal of Environmental Management