Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

The fate of microplastics and organic matter leaching behavior during chlorination

Researchers studied how chlorination affects polystyrene and polyethylene microplastics and the organic matter they release, finding that chlorination promoted organic carbon leaching from microplastics at about 0.3 to 0.5 parts per thousand of the plastic mass. The leached organic matter showed significant potential to form trihalomethane and haloacetonitrile disinfection byproducts, raising concerns about chlorinated microplastics in drinking water systems.

2022 Chemosphere 46 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of non-aged and UV-aged microplastics on the formation of halogenated disinfection byproducts during chlorination of drinking water and its mechanism

Researchers investigated how both new and UV-aged microplastics affect the formation of halogenated disinfection byproducts during chlorine treatment of drinking water. They found that non-aged microplastics reduced byproduct formation by adsorbing organic precursors, while UV-aged microplastics had a much smaller reduction effect because they release organic compounds that offset adsorption. The study reveals that environmental aging of microplastics changes their impact on drinking water treatment chemistry in important ways.

2024 Environmental Pollution 12 citations
Article Tier 2

UV aging of microplastic polymers promotes their chemical transformation and byproduct formation upon chlorination

Researchers studied how UV aging of different microplastic polymers affects their behavior during water chlorination treatment. They found that UV aging significantly increased the reactivity of polyamide and polyester microplastics, promoting the release of harmful organic compounds and the formation of disinfection byproducts by more than 10-fold. The study reveals that weathered microplastics in drinking water systems may generate more toxic byproducts during standard chlorination than their pristine counterparts.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 46 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of UV light on physicochemical changes in thermoplastic polyurethanes: Mechanism and disinfection byproduct formation

Researchers examined how UV light exposure changes the properties of thermoplastic polyurethane microplastics in water and whether those changes affect the formation of harmful disinfection byproducts during water chlorination. They found that UV exposure broke the plastic into smaller fragments and released soluble chemicals that significantly increased byproduct formation after chlorination. The findings suggest that aging microplastics in water systems could contribute to the creation of potentially harmful chemicals during standard water treatment.

2024 Chemosphere 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption Behavior and Mechanisms of Trihalomethanes onto Virgin and Weathered Polyvinyl Chloride Microplastics

Researchers studied how trihalomethane disinfection byproducts adsorb onto virgin and weathered PVC microplastics, finding that weathering enhanced adsorption capacity due to surface changes. The results highlight how microplastics in drinking water and treated wastewater can accumulate regulated chemical byproducts.

2024 Toxics 7 citations
Article Tier 2

The disinfectant residues promote the leaching of water contaminants from plastic pipe particles

This study found that trace amounts of disinfectants commonly used in water treatment can accelerate the aging of plastic water pipes, causing them to release more contaminants. When plastic pipe particles were exposed to chlorine-based disinfectants and ozone, they leached higher levels of organic chemicals and microplastics into the water. The findings raise concerns about how the interaction between water treatment chemicals and plastic plumbing may affect drinking water quality.

2023 Environmental Pollution 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Leaching of organic matter from microplastics and its role in disinfection by-product formation

Researchers found that microplastics leach organic matter into water that subsequently acts as a precursor for disinfection by-products during chlorination, with polystyrene MPs generating the most leachate and producing the most by-products compared to polyethylene MPs.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Leaching of organic matters and formation of disinfection by-product as a result of presence of microplastics in natural freshwaters

Researchers found that microplastics leach dissolved organic carbon into freshwater, and when combined with chlorine disinfection, this leached material promotes the formation of disinfection byproducts like chloroform in drinking water treatment.

2022 Chemosphere 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Mechanistic insight into the role of typical microplastics in chlorination disinfection: Precursors and adsorbents of both MP-DOM and DBPs

Chlorination of polypropylene and polystyrene microplastics released dissolved organic matter that formed disinfection by-products, with PS-MPs being more susceptible to chlorination; the study found that even small MPs in drinking water can contribute to DBP precursor loads during treatment.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of chlorine and UV/H2O2 on microplastics in drinking water

Using chlorine and UV/hydrogen peroxide at dosages realistic for actual drinking water treatment plants, this study assessed whether standard disinfection processes alter microplastics in tap water. The work addresses a critical public health question — whether the water treatment people rely on to make tap water safe actually removes or changes the microplastics that have been detected in treated drinking water.

2024 Environmental Science Water Research & Technology 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on DBPs formation under the chlorination of natural organic matters

Researchers investigated how microplastics affect disinfection byproduct formation during chlorination of natural organic matter in water treatment, finding that the presence of microplastics can influence the generation of potentially harmful DBPs.

2022 Chemosphere 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Insight into the dynamic transformation properties of microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter and its contribution to the formation of chlorination disinfection by-products

Researchers studied how dissolved organic matter released from microplastics transforms under UV light and how it contributes to the formation of harmful disinfection byproducts during water chlorination. They found that UV exposure changed the chemical composition of the microplastic-derived organic matter, affecting its reactivity during disinfection. The findings suggest that microplastics in water sources may indirectly increase the formation of potentially harmful chemicals during standard water treatment.

2024 RSC Advances 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactive impacts of microplastics and chlorine on biological stability and microbial community formation in stagnant water

Researchers found that microplastics in stagnant drinking water accelerated chlorine decay and promoted microbial regrowth, with microplastic-associated biofilms harboring opportunistic pathogens and shifting microbial community composition toward potentially harmful species.

2022 Water Research 27 citations
Article Tier 2

Characteristics of microplastic polymer-derived dissolved organic matter and its potential as a disinfection byproduct precursor

UV irradiation caused polypropylene and polyethylene microplastics to leach dissolved organic matter into water, producing low-molecular-weight compounds that could react with chlorine during water treatment to form trihalomethanes, a known class of disinfection byproducts and carcinogens. The findings suggest that microplastics in source water could be a previously unrecognized precursor to harmful disinfection byproducts.

2020 Water Research 209 citations
Article Tier 2

Unveiling the optical and molecular characteristics of aging microplastics derived dissolved organic matter transformed by UV/chlor(am)ine oxidation and its potential for disinfection byproducts formation

Researchers studied how UV light and common water disinfection chemicals break down microplastics in water and found that different treatment methods produce different types of dissolved organic matter from the plastic. Some treatment combinations, particularly UV with chlorine, created byproducts that could form harmful disinfection byproducts when water is later chlorinated. This is important because it means water treatment processes might unintentionally create new toxic compounds from the microplastics already present in water.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 61 citations
Article Tier 2

Insight into the chemical transformation and organic release of polyurethane microplastics during chlorination

Scientists investigated what happens to polyurethane microplastics during water chlorination, a standard step in water treatment. They found that chlorination breaks down the plastic surface and releases organic chemicals, especially from UV-weathered particles, which produced significantly more leached compounds. The findings suggest that water treatment processes themselves may inadvertently release harmful byproducts from microplastics.

2023 Environmental Pollution 18 citations
Article Tier 2

The Influence of Some Physicochemical Parameters of Surface Waters on the Formation of Trihalomethanes During the Drinking Water Treatment Process

Despite its title referencing trihalomethanes in drinking water treatment, this paper studies disinfection byproducts formed during water chlorination — not microplastic pollution. It examines how water temperature, organic carbon content, and pH affect the formation of potentially carcinogenic chemical compounds in tap water in Romania and is not relevant to microplastics.

2025 Molecules 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Factors affecting the leaching of micro and nanoplastics in the water distribution system

Researchers studied how plastic water pipes in distribution systems leach micro- and nanoplastics into drinking water under varying conditions of pH, chlorine levels, and pipe material. They found that higher pH and the presence of free chlorine both contributed to increased particle release from the pipes. The findings raise concerns that everyday drinking water infrastructure may be an overlooked source of human microplastic exposure.

2023 Journal of Environmental Management 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Exploring the co-occurrence of microplastics, DOM and DBPs inside PVC pipes undergoing chlorination by correlation analysis and unsupervised learning

Researchers exposed PVC drinking water pipes to different chlorine concentrations in a laboratory setup and tracked the co-release of dissolved organic matter, microplastics, and disinfection by-products (DBPs). At higher chlorine doses, both PVC-derived MPs and DOM were released and correlated with DBP formation, while at 1 ppm chlorine, natural organic matter dominated—identifying disinfection as a driver of in-pipe MP generation.

2025 Chemosphere 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Volatile organic compounds generation pathways and mechanisms from microplastics in water: Ultraviolet, chlorine and ultraviolet/chlorine disinfection

Researchers examined how UV, chlorine, and combined UV/chlorine disinfection treatments cause microplastics to release volatile organic compounds, identifying distinct degradation pathways for polypropylene, polystyrene, and PVC that generate diverse chemical byproducts in treated water.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 36 citations