Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution in the Environment

This review examines the ubiquitous presence of microplastics as emerging environmental pollutants across all major environmental compartments, synthesizing data on their sources, fates, and concentrations over time and space to characterize the scale of global contamination.

2025
Article Tier 2

Microplastics

This overview paper introduced the topic of microplastics — their origins, classification, environmental distribution, and ecological significance — as an entry point into the broader field of plastic pollution science. It contextualizes current research challenges and policy needs.

2024 Microplastics
Article Tier 2

Role 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.

2021 Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Micro- and Nano-Plastics Contaminants in the Environment: Sources, Fate, Toxicity, Detection, Remediation, and Sustainable Perspectives

This review provides a broad overview of micro- and nanoplastic pollution, covering where these particles come from, how they spread through the environment, and the damage they cause to living things including humans. The authors also compare different methods for removing microplastics from the environment, including physical, chemical, and biological approaches. The paper calls for more research and global cooperation to develop better tools for measuring the health risks of plastic pollution.

2023 Water 31 citations
Article Tier 2

Global environmental problem of microplastics

This paper provides an overview of microplastic pollution as a growing global environmental problem, examining how tiny plastic particles spread through ecosystems worldwide. It highlights the scale of the challenge and the need for coordinated scientific and policy responses.

2024 Ecological Sciences
Article Tier 2

An overview of the sources, hazards and removal of microplastics

This review covers the sources, environmental fate, and removal methods for micro- and nanoplastics, noting that secondary particles formed from macroplastic breakdown constitute over 90% of total plastic pollution and summarizing physical, chemical, and biological removal approaches.

2025 Journal of Macromolecular Science Part A
Article Tier 2

Microplastic in the Marine Environment

This review examines the presence, sources, distribution, and ecological effects of microplastics in marine environments, arguing that the pervasive use of plastics in modern society and poor waste management have made ocean microplastic pollution a critical global issue.

2023 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent advances in research from plastic materials to microplastics

This review traced recent advances in understanding plastic material degradation into microplastics, covering mechanical, photochemical, and biological fragmentation pathways and reviewing current knowledge on environmental fate and biological effects.

2024 Zastita materijala 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Driver, Trends and Fate of Plastics and Micro Plastics Occurrence in the Environment

This review examines the sources, trends, and environmental fate of plastics and microplastics, which have become a major global pollution problem due to massive production and poor waste management. Understanding how plastics move through the environment is essential for designing effective pollution controls.

2023
Article Tier 2

A critical review on occurrence, distribution, environmental impacts and biodegradation of microplastics

This review provides a broad overview of microplastic pollution, covering where these particles come from, how they spread through terrestrial and aquatic environments, and their effects on ecosystems. Researchers found that microplastics are now present in virtually every environment studied worldwide, from deep oceans to mountain soils. The study highlights biodegradation by microorganisms as a promising but still underdeveloped approach for addressing microplastic contamination.

2023 Journal of Environmental Biology 21 citations
Review Tier 2

Microplastics as contaminants in the marine environment: A review

This review synthesized the state of knowledge on microplastics as marine contaminants, covering their sources, pathways, distribution, biological uptake, and potential ecological and toxicological effects.

2011 Marine Pollution Bulletin 5709 citations
Review Tier 2

A review on microplastics: sources, environmental fate, degradation pathways, and analytical identification methods.

This review paper summarizes existing research on tiny plastic particles called microplastics and how scientists detect them in the environment. Microplastics are a growing concern because they contaminate our air, water, and food, potentially affecting human health when we breathe or eat them. The researchers found that new, cheaper detection methods could help us better monitor these plastic particles and understand their impact on our health and environment.

2026 RSC advances
Article Tier 2

Microplastics: Contaminants of Global Concern in the Anthropocene

This review summarizes the state of knowledge on microplastics as a global contaminant, covering their sources, distribution in different environments, and potential ecological and health effects. It frames microplastics as a defining pollution challenge of the Anthropocene era.

2018 Revista Virtual de Química 64 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic: A Burning Issue of Present Era

This commentary examines microplastic pollution as a critical contemporary environmental and public health issue, outlining the sources, environmental persistence, and pathways by which microplastics enter food chains and biological systems. The piece calls attention to the urgency of coordinated research and policy responses to address microplastic contamination at scale.

2025 The Journal of Ad-din Women s Medical College
Article Tier 2

Microplásticos: Ocorrência Ambiental E Desafios Analíticos

This review covers the environmental occurrence of microplastics (1 µm to 5 mm) and the analytical challenges involved in their detection, discussing how biological and physicochemical processes alter plastic debris in ecosystems and the methods used to identify and quantify microplastics across environmental matrices.

2021 Química Nova 48 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution - what have we learned from the last 20 years of research and what are the priorities ahead?

This paper reviewed 20 years of microplastic research since the foundational 2004 study, summarizing what has been learned about sources, distribution, ecological impacts, and remaining knowledge gaps. The review emphasizes that while understanding has grown dramatically, key questions about dose-response relationships and long-term ecological effects remain unresolved.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

The planet in the clutches of plastic garbage: myths, reality, prospects

This review examines the life cycle of polymeric materials to analyze sources and accumulation of plastic waste, discussing the micro- and nanoscale fragmentation problem and arguing that solutions must include ecologically safe technologies for recycling, combustion, and landfill disposal of polymeric waste.

2025 Priroda
Article Tier 2

Degradation and Recycling of Polymer Materials

This review synthesizes research on the degradation and recycling of polymer materials, covering microplastic formation, recycling strategies, and plastic degradation mechanisms as responses to the significant environmental damage caused by discarded plastics in ocean and other ecosystems.

2025
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution - what have we learned from the last 20 years of research and what are the priorities ahead?

This paper reviewed two decades of microplastic research progress, from the 2004 discovery paper through current knowledge on sources, environmental distribution, and effects. Key findings are that the field has matured substantially, though standardized methodologies and long-term health impact data are still needed.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in ecosystems and health

This review summarizes how microplastics originate from degrading macroplastics and intentionally manufactured products, describes their impacts on marine organisms and human health, and surveys emerging recycling technologies and regulatory responses. It provides a useful plain-language synthesis of why microplastics are a dual environmental-and-health problem, acting both as physical contaminants and as vectors for toxic chemicals.

2023 ECORFAN Journal Republic of Guatemala
Article Tier 2

The present and future of microplastic pollution in the marine environment

This review assessed the current and projected state of microplastic pollution in the marine environment, examining evidence on sources, accumulation trends, and biological effects and arguing that the problem will worsen without significant intervention.

2013 Environmental Pollution 1556 citations
Article Tier 2

Distribution and importance of microplastics in the marine environment: A review of the sources, fate, effects, and potential solutions

This review synthesized research on the distribution and significance of microplastics across the marine environment, covering sources, transport pathways, ecological interactions, and the state of knowledge on biological and chemical effects.

2017 Environment International 2517 citations
Article Tier 2

Nano- and microplastics in the environment : presence, effects and their role as a Trojan horse for other pollutants

This thesis reviews the presence and effects of nano- and microplastics in the environment, examining how they act as carriers for other pollutants and discussing their potential health impacts on ecosystems and humans.

2023 SPIRE - Sciences Po Institutional REpository
Article Tier 2

Polymers and Microplastics: Implications on Our Environment and Sustainability

This review discusses the environmental implications of polymers and microplastics, covering their properties, production trends, degradation pathways, and ecological impacts. It highlights the tension between the industrial utility of plastics and their growing threat to environmental and human health.

2020 IntechOpen eBooks 2 citations