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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Weathering Processand Characteristics of Microplasticsin Coastal Wetlands: A 24-Month In Situ Study
ClearWeathering Process and Characteristics of Microplastics in Coastal Wetlands: A 24-Month In Situ Study
Researchers placed five types of common microplastics in a coastal wetland for 24 months and tracked how they broke down over time. All plastics showed increasing surface damage, chemical changes, and fragmentation, with polystyrene degrading the fastest. The study demonstrates that natural environments actively break microplastics into ever-smaller pieces, which are more easily taken up by organisms and can eventually enter the human food chain.
Aging of Microplastics across a Constructed Wetland
Researchers studied the weathering and microbial colonization of five microplastic polymer types over 18 months within four habitat zones of a constructed wastewater wetland, finding that microorganisms colonized plastics rapidly and that weathering rates varied by polymer type and habitat.
Surface properties and changes in morphology of microplastics exposed in-situ to Chinese coastal wetlands
This study examined how microplastics change physically and chemically after being exposed in real coastal wetland environments, finding significant surface oxidation and biofouling after 90 days. Understanding how plastic particles age in natural settings is important because weathered microplastics may behave differently in organisms compared to pristine particles used in lab studies.
Comprehensive Understanding on the Aging Process and Mechanism of Microplastics in the Sediment–Water Interface: Untangling the Role of Photoaging and Biodegradation
Researchers examined how microplastics break down at the boundary between water and sediment in coastal wetlands, comparing the roles of sunlight-driven aging and biological degradation. They found that photoaging was the dominant process, accounting for over 55% of surface changes, and that biodegradable plastics aged faster than conventional ones. The study provides important insights into how microplastics transform in real-world coastal environments.
Aging of Microplasticsacross a Constructed Wetland
Researchers tracked the aging of five microplastic polymer types — LDPE, HDPE, polypropylene, polystyrene, and PET — across four habitats within a wastewater constructed wetland over 18 months, finding that physical, chemical, and biological processes jointly drive weathering and microorganism colonisation of plastics in these treatment systems.
Simulated experimental investigation of microplastic weathering in marine environment
Researchers simulated microplastic weathering under marine conditions, finding that exposure to UV light, saltwater, and mechanical abrasion progressively degraded plastic surfaces, increased surface roughness, and enhanced the adsorption capacity of contaminants onto microplastic particles.
Novel insight into the aging process of microplastics: An in-situ study in coastal wetlands
Scientists tracked how microplastics age and break down in a coastal wetland in China over three months and found that both sunlight and microbial communities work together to degrade the plastic surfaces. Different plastic types broke down at very different rates, with estimated lifespans ranging from 335 to 661 days before significant degradation. This research helps predict how long microplastics persist in coastal environments that are important for fisheries and human food sources.
Macro-plastic weathering in a coastal environment: field experiment in Chesapeake Bay, Maryland
Field experiments in Chesapeake Bay tracked how macroplastic items of different polymer types weathered and fragmented over time in a coastal environment. The study found that UV exposure and wave action caused rapid surface degradation and fragmentation, with important implications for how quickly plastic pollution generates secondary microplastics in coastal zones.
From macroplastic to microplastic: Degradation of high-density polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene in a salt marsh habitat
Researchers subjected high-density polyethylene, polypropylene, and other plastics to simulated environmental degradation and tracked their fragmentation from macro- to microplastic sizes, characterizing surface changes and particle generation rates.
Physicochemical and biological ageing processes of (micro)plastics in the environment: a multi-tiered study on polyethylene
Researchers applied a multi-tiered approach combining laboratory aging, field deployment, and environmental simulation to study how polyethylene plastic undergoes physicochemical and biological weathering in natural settings. The study found that UV radiation and microbial colonization act synergistically to accelerate surface oxidation and fragmentation of PE into smaller particles.
UVA-induced weathering of microplastics in seawater: surface property transformations and kinetics
Researchers studied how UVA radiation weathers microplastics in seawater, examining changes to surface properties and degradation rates. The study developed a model integrating an aging index with degradation kinetics, finding that UV exposure significantly transforms microplastic surface characteristics, which affects their behavior and potential ecological impact in marine environments.
The Photodegradation Process of PP Plastics in Tidal Flat Environments: The Role and Mechanism of Chloride Ions
Researchers investigated how chloride ions in tidal flat environments affect polypropylene plastic photodegradation, finding that chloride accelerated degradation kinetics, increased carbonyl index values faster, and promoted microplastic fragmentation — identifying saltwater chemistry as a key factor in coastal plastic aging.
Characteristics analysis of plastisphere biofilm and effect of aging products on nitrogen metabolizing flora in microcosm wetlands experiment
Researchers placed three types of plastic in miniature constructed wetlands for 180 days and tracked how they aged and affected microbial communities. The plastics degraded at different rates, with PVC developing new chemical groups and all surfaces becoming less water-repellent as bacteria colonized them. The plastic surfaces altered nitrogen-processing bacteria in the wetland water, suggesting microplastics can disrupt nutrient cycling in natural wetland ecosystems.
Aging of microplastics in a subtropical river system in Florida, USA
Researchers conducted a two-year field study in a subtropical Florida river to track how five common polymer types age across different environmental layers from air to sediment. They found that aging processes, including surface cracking, chemical oxidation, and microbial colonization, varied significantly by polymer type and environmental position, revealing the complex ways microplastics transform in river systems.
The impact of microplastic weathering on interactions with the soil environment: a review
This review examines how weathering — exposure to UV light, moisture, and physical forces — changes the surface properties of microplastics and affects their interactions with soil. Weathered microplastics behave differently in the environment, potentially altering soil structure and the movement of water and nutrients.
Comprehensive assessment of photo-oxidative degradation and biofilm colonization on microplastic pellets in simulated marine environment
Researchers exposed polyethylene, polypropylene, and nylon-6 microplastics to artificial UV aging and chemical oxidation in seawater to study photo-oxidative degradation and subsequent biofilm colonization. Aging altered surface chemistry and enabled biofilm formation, with degradation rates and biofilm composition varying by polymer type.
Aging simulation of thin-film plastics in different environments to examine the formation of microplastic
Researchers aged polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene thin films under land, freshwater, estuarine, and oceanic conditions, finding that UV radiation was the primary driver of surface degradation and microplastic formation, with degradation rates varying substantially by environmental medium.
Surface weathering and changes in components of microplastics from estuarine beaches
Researchers examined surface weathering and compositional changes in microplastics recovered from estuarine sediments in Shandong Province, China, characterising morphological and chemical transformations in these particles as a function of environmental exposure.
Towards Understanding Drivers of Plastic Embrittlement and Fragmentation in Coastal Environments
This review examines the physical and chemical drivers of plastic fragmentation in coastal environments, including UV radiation, mechanical wave action, temperature fluctuations, and oxidation. The authors find that coastal environments produce microplastics faster than open ocean environments due to compounding abiotic stressors, and that fragmentation dynamics shape the size distribution and toxicity profile of coastal plastic pollution.
An advanced analytical approach to assess the long-term degradation of microplastics in the marine environment
Researchers exposed several types of plastic pellets to realistic ocean conditions over time and found that marine weathering caused much faster surface degradation than previously estimated — up to 469 micrometers per year, twelve times higher than older figures — while also generating secondary micro- and nanoplastic particles smaller than one micron. The results provide critical real-world data for assessing how quickly ocean plastics break down into even tinier, harder-to-detect fragments.
Microplastic aging and plastisphere succession in mangrove sediments: Mechanisms, microbial interactions, and degradation potential
Microplastic aging processes and the succession of microbial communities (plastisphere) in mangrove sediments were tracked over time, revealing how the plastic surface microbiome changes as particles weather. Understanding plastisphere dynamics in coastal ecosystems is important for assessing how microplastics interact with and potentially disrupt mangrove ecology.
Distribution and Biological Response of Nanoplastics in Constructed Wetland Microcosms: Mechanistic Insights into the Role of Photoaging
This study looked at how sunlight aging changes the behavior of nanoplastics in wetland ecosystems. Researchers found that sun-aged nanoplastics accumulated differently in plants, water, and soil compared to fresh ones, and caused stronger biological responses in wetland organisms, suggesting that weathered nanoplastics in the environment may be more harmful than previously thought.
To what extent are microplastics from the open ocean weathered?
Researchers collected plastic debris from the North Atlantic subtropical gyre and analyzed its physical and chemical weathering, finding that most particles showed signs of significant UV-induced oxidation. Understanding the degree of weathering is important because it affects how plastics interact with organisms and how easily they fragment further into nanoplastics.
Critical Impactof Colored Pigments on the Long-TermPhotoaging of Polyethylene Microplastics in Coastal Seawater Environments
This study examined the long-term photoaging of polyethylene microplastics in coastal seawater, finding that pigment color significantly influences UV-driven surface oxidation rates and the release of additive chemicals, with darker pigments generally accelerating weathering processes.