Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Adsorption and desorption mechanisms of oxytetracycline on poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) microplastics after degradation: The effects of biofilms, Cu(II), water pH, and dissolved organic matter

Researchers found that biodegradation significantly increases the ability of poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) microplastics to adsorb the antibiotic oxytetracycline, and that the presence of copper ions further amplifies this adsorption, raising concerns about how degrading biodegradable plastics transport pharmaceutical contaminants.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 38 citations
Article Tier 2

Biofilm colonization on non-degradable and degradable microplastics change the adsorption of Cu(II) and facilitate the dominance of pathogenic microbes

Researchers studied how biofilm growth on both degradable and non-degradable microplastics alters their ability to absorb copper from water. They found that aging and biofilm colonization significantly increased the adsorption capacity of both polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics for copper ions. The study also revealed that biofilm-covered microplastics harbored a higher proportion of potentially pathogenic microbes, raising concerns about microplastics as vectors for both heavy metals and harmful bacteria.

2025 Environmental Research 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Enhanced copper adsorption by polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics: The role of biofilm development and chemical aging

Researchers studied how chemical aging and biofilm growth on polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics changed their ability to absorb copper from water. Both processes significantly increased the surface area and chemical reactivity of the plastics, making them absorb substantially more copper than fresh microplastics. The study suggests that as microplastics age and develop biofilms in natural waterways, they become increasingly effective at concentrating heavy metals, potentially altering how these contaminants move through aquatic environments.

2025 Environmental Research 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Insights into interactions of biodegradable and non-biodegradable microplastics with heavy metals

Researchers found that biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics can adsorb heavy metals like cadmium, copper, and chromium at rates comparable to or exceeding conventional non-biodegradable plastics, suggesting biodegradable microplastics may also serve as carriers of toxic metals in the environment.

2023 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 35 citations
Article Tier 2

Insights into adsorption behavior and mechanism of Cu(II) onto biodegradable and conventional microplastics: Effect of aging process and environmental factors

Researchers compared how biodegradable and conventional microplastics adsorb copper ions from water, examining how aging processes and environmental factors influence this interaction. The study found that aged microplastics had a greater capacity to bind copper than fresh ones, suggesting that weathered plastic debris in the environment may serve as carriers for heavy metal contaminants.

2023 Environmental Pollution 39 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behaviors of the pristine and aged thermoplastic polyurethane microplastics in Cu(II)-OTC coexisting system

Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) microplastics in both pristine and photo-aged forms were tested for their ability to simultaneously adsorb the antibiotic oxytetracycline and the heavy metal copper(II) from water. Photo-aged TPU showed altered adsorption capacity compared to pristine TPU, indicating that weathering changes the contaminant-carrying behavior of plastic debris.

2020 Journal of Hazardous Materials 139 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of heavy metals by biofilm-coated microplastics in aquatic environments: Mechanisms, isotherm and kinetic processes, and influencing factors

This review synthesizes research on how biofilms—microbial coatings that naturally form on microplastics in water—alter the particles' ability to absorb heavy metals like lead, copper, and cadmium, finding that biofilmed microplastics generally adsorb more metal than bare plastic and that electrostatic forces and surface complexation are the dominant mechanisms. This matters because microplastics coated in both biofilm and toxic metals may deliver a double dose of contamination to organisms that ingest them. The review identifies key gaps, including how competitive metal mixtures and shifting biofilm composition over time affect this combined pollution risk.

2026 The Science of The Total Environment
Article Tier 2

Effect of biofilm colonization on Pb(II) adsorption onto poly(butylene succinate) microplastic during its biodegradation

Researchers found that biofilm colonization on biodegradable PBS microplastics during degradation increased lead adsorption roughly tenfold compared to virgin plastic, suggesting that degrading biodegradable plastics may concentrate heavy metals more effectively in aquatic environments.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 83 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of heavy metals onto microplastics derived from conventional and biodegradable commercial plastic products

Researchers tested how well different types of microplastics, including both conventional and biodegradable plastics, absorb heavy metals like lead, nickel, copper, zinc, and cadmium from water. They found that all microplastic types could pick up significant amounts of heavy metals, with biodegradable plastics sometimes absorbing even more than conventional ones. This is concerning because microplastics carrying heavy metals could deliver a double dose of contamination to organisms that ingest them.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 49 citations
Article Tier 2

UV and chemical aging alter the adsorption behavior of microplastics for tetracycline

Researchers found that UV and chemical aging significantly increased microplastics' capacity to adsorb tetracycline, with biodegradable PBAT showing more dramatic changes in surface properties and adsorption behavior compared to conventional plastics like polystyrene and polyethylene.

2022 Environmental Pollution 135 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of Cu(II) and Cr(VI) on aged microplastics in antibiotics-heavy metals coexisting system

Researchers investigated how antibiotics affect the adsorption of copper and chromium onto aged polystyrene and PVC microplastics, finding that antibiotic co-contamination alters heavy metal binding behavior on weathered plastics in aqueous environments.

2021 Chemosphere 169 citations
Article Tier 2

Atrazine sorption on biodegradable microplastics: Significance of microbial aging

Researchers found that soil microbial aging of biodegradable microplastics — polylactic acid (PLA) and PBAT — significantly alters their surface properties and increases their capacity to adsorb the herbicide atrazine, suggesting that biodegradable plastics may pose underappreciated pollutant-transport risks as they break down.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 32 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of aged polybutylece terephthalate microplastics coexisting with Cd(II)-tetracycline

Researchers studied how aged polybutylene terephthalate microplastics interact with cadmium and the antibiotic tetracycline in water, finding that weathered microplastics adsorb these pollutants more readily than pristine ones. The study suggests that aging changes the surface properties of microplastics, increasing their capacity to carry heavy metals and antibiotics and potentially amplifying their environmental toxicity.

2022 Chemosphere 50 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption properties and influencing factors of Cu(II) on polystyrene and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics in seawater

Researchers investigated how polystyrene and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics adsorb copper ions in seawater, characterizing adsorption kinetics and influencing factors to understand microplastics' role as vectors for heavy metal pollutants in marine environments.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 126 citations
Article Tier 2

Natural aging and Cu(II) coexistence synergistically promote nonylphenol adsorption by degradable PLA microplastics in aquatic environments

Researchers studied how natural aging and copper ions interact to increase adsorption of the endocrine disruptor nonylphenol onto biodegradable PLA microplastics. Aging alone boosted adsorption capacity by 41.4%, while the presence of Cu(II) increased it by 86.6%, with the two factors acting synergistically.

2025 Colloids and Surfaces A Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects 2 citations
Article Tier 2

UV-photoaging of degradable microplastics in atmospheric and wastewater: Surface changes and enhanced antibiotic interaction

When biodegradable microplastics spend time in wastewater rather than open air, they age much more aggressively — developing biofilms and oxidized surfaces that dramatically increase their ability to absorb antibiotics. This study found that wastewater-aged polybutylene succinate microplastics adsorbed 2.4 times more tetracycline than fresh plastic, and outperformed air-aged plastic by 40%, driven by biofilm chemistry and increased surface area. The implication is that wastewater treatment systems — rather than solving the microplastic problem — may be transforming biodegradable plastics into potent carriers for antibiotic resistance.

2026 Environmental Pollution
Article Tier 2

Effects of biofilm on metal adsorption behavior and microbial community of microplastics

Researchers found that biofilm development on polystyrene microplastics enhanced their ability to adsorb copper and lead more than UV aging alone, with biofilm altering both the adsorption mechanisms and microbial community composition on the plastic surfaces.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 125 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption properties and mechanism of Cu(Ⅱ) on virgin and aged microplastics in the aquatic environment

This study examined how UV aging of polyamide (PA) and polylactic acid (PLA) microplastics affects their ability to adsorb copper (Cu II) from water. UV aging increased surface area and altered surface chemistry, making aged microplastics better carriers of copper contamination — raising concerns that weathered plastics in the environment may concentrate and transport heavy metals more effectively than fresh plastics.

2023 Research Square (Research Square) 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption properties and mechanism of Cu(II) on virgin and aged microplastics in the aquatic environment

Researchers examined how UV aging changes the surface properties of polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics and affects their ability to adsorb copper ions in water. The study found that UV irradiation altered the physical and chemical characteristics of both plastic types, increasing their capacity to bind heavy metals. Evidence indicates that weathered microplastics may act as more effective carriers of heavy metal contaminants in aquatic environments compared to virgin plastics.

2024 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption and Desorption Behavior of Microplastics on Copper Ions in Aqueous Solution

This study investigated how microplastics of different types and surface chemistry adsorb and release copper ions in water. The findings show that microplastics can pick up and later release heavy metals depending on environmental conditions, acting as vectors that transport toxic metals through aquatic ecosystems.

2023 Academic Journal of Materials & Chemistry 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Biodegradable microplastics adsorb more Cd than conventional microplastic and biofilms enhance their adsorption

Researchers compared how biodegradable polylactic acid and conventional polyethylene microplastics adsorb the heavy metal cadmium, with and without biofilm development from outdoor weathering. They found that pristine PLA adsorbed significantly more cadmium than pristine PE, and that biofilms forming on weathered plastics were responsible for most of the increased cadmium uptake. The study suggests that biodegradable microplastics in agricultural soils may pose a greater risk for heavy metal transport than conventional plastics.

2025 Chemosphere 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of heavy metals on the adsorption of ciprofloxacin on polyethylene microplastics: Mechanism and toxicity evaluation

Researchers studied how heavy metals in water affect the ability of polyethylene microplastics to absorb the antibiotic ciprofloxacin. They found that heavy metals competed with the antibiotic for binding sites on the microplastic surface, changing how much of each pollutant the plastic could carry. This is important because it shows microplastics in real-world environments may transport different combinations of pollutants, potentially delivering both antibiotics and heavy metals into the food chain.

2023 Chemosphere 83 citations
Article Tier 2

Interfacial interaction between diverse microplastics and tetracycline by adsorption in an aqueous solution

Polyethylene microplastics showed the strongest adsorption of the antibiotic tetracycline among three plastic types tested, and the presence of metals like lead and zinc enhanced tetracycline adsorption while copper reduced it. Ion exchange was identified as the primary adsorption mechanism, suggesting that microplastics in aquaculture settings could concentrate antibiotics and increase their environmental persistence.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 196 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption and desorption characteristics of heavy metals onto conventional and biodegradable plastics.

This study compared how conventional polyethylene plastic bags and biodegradable polylactic acid bags adsorb heavy metals like lead and cadmium from water. Both types adsorbed significant amounts of heavy metals, suggesting that biodegradable plastics, before they decompose, can still act as vectors transporting toxic metals through aquatic food chains.

2023 Chemosphere