Papers

61,005 results
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Review Tier 2

The chemical behaviors of microplastics in marine environment: A review

This review summarized interactions between microplastics and organic pollutants and metals in the marine environment, covering sorption behavior across polymer types, the role of degradation in altering sorption capacity, and global monitoring data on pollutant concentrations on marine plastics. The authors conclude that microplastic type, pollutant properties, and environmental conditions all strongly influence chemical accumulation on plastic surfaces.

2019 Marine Pollution Bulletin 654 citations
Article Tier 2

The sorption behaviour of amine micropollutants on polyethylene microplastics – impact of aging and interactions with green seaweed

Researchers studied how long-term aging of polyethylene microplastics changes their ability to bind organic pollutants (amine micropollutants), and how interactions with green seaweed affect this process. Aged microplastics showed different sorption behavior than fresh ones, which has implications for how effectively they transport contaminants through aquatic food webs.

2020 Environmental Science Processes & Impacts 28 citations
Article Tier 2

Induced aging, structural change, and adsorption behavior modifications of microplastics by microalgae

Researchers found that microalgal biofouling caused more significant aging and surface degradation of microplastics compared to river microbial biofouling over a 30-day period. The study suggests that algae-induced aging substantially enhances the ability of polyethylene and PVC microplastics to adsorb organic pollutants like bisphenol analogues, increasing their potential to transport contaminants in the environment.

2022 Environment International 46 citations
Article Tier 2

Change in adsorption behavior of aquatic humic substances on microplastic through biotic and abiotic aging processes

Researchers found that both UV irradiation and microbial aging of polyethylene microplastics significantly altered their surface chemistry, changing how aquatic humic substances adsorb onto the plastic surface and highlighting the importance of weathering state in assessing microplastic-contaminant interactions.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and organic contaminants: Investigation of the sorption process on different polymer types

Researchers investigated sorption of organic contaminants onto microplastics collected from environmental samples, finding that real-world MPs had different sorption capacities than laboratory-prepared particles due to surface aging, biofouling, and co-sorption of natural organic matter.

2025 Journal of Contaminant Hydrology 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic interactions with freshwater microalgae: Hetero-aggregation and changes in plastic density appear strongly dependent on polymer type

Researchers studied interactions between microplastics and freshwater microalgae, finding that microplastics can physically attach to algal cells to form hetero-aggregates, altering both particle behavior and algal physiology.

2016 Environmental Pollution 704 citations
Article Tier 2

The Inhibition of Microcystin Adsorption by Microplastics in the Presence of Algal Organic Matters

Researchers found that polyethylene, polystyrene, and polymethyl methacrylate microplastics can adsorb microcystin MC-LR from water, but the presence of algal intracellular organic matter (IOM) reduced this adsorption by up to 22.7% due to competitive binding, suggesting that microplastic uptake of harmful natural toxins is likely overestimated in realistic aquatic conditions.

2022 Toxics 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of microalgal biomass and microplastics on the sorption behaviour of pesticides in soil: a comparative study

Researchers examined how microalgal biomass interacts with microplastics to influence pesticide sorption behavior, finding that algal exudates coating MP surfaces altered their affinity for pesticides and affected the overall fate of pesticide-MP complexes in water.

2025 Environmental Sciences Europe 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Agglomeration of nano- and microplastic particles in seawater by autochthonous and de novo-produced sources of exopolymeric substances

Nano- and microplastic particles in seawater were found to readily form agglomerates with naturally produced exopolymeric substances, altering their surface properties, size, and sinking behavior compared to pristine particles. The study demonstrates that natural organic matter in seawater fundamentally changes how plastic particles behave and interact with marine organisms and sediments.

2018 Marine Pollution Bulletin 165 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of organic matter on interaction forces between polystyrene microplastics: An experimental study

Researchers examined how organic matter in seawater affects the aggregation and adhesion forces between polystyrene microplastics, finding that organic coatings alter surface interaction forces in ways that influence whether microplastics clump together and sink or remain dispersed in the water column.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 35 citations
Article Tier 2

Interplay of plastic pollution with algae and plants: hidden danger or a blessing?

Researchers tested the ability of three microalgae species to remove microplastics from water through bioadhesion, finding that all three species could adsorb particles onto their surfaces. Removal efficiency depended on particle size, surface charge, and algae cell morphology.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 65 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactions between polypropylene microplastics (PP-MPs) and humic acid influenced by aging of MPs

Researchers examined how aging affects polypropylene microplastic interactions with humic acid, finding that aged microplastics with increased surface oxygen groups showed stronger adsorption of humic acid compared to pristine particles, altering their environmental behavior.

2022 Water Research 145 citations
Article Tier 2

The release inhibition of organic substances from microplastics in the presence of algal derived organic matters: Influence of the molecular weight-dependent inhibition heterogeneities

This study found that algae-derived organic matter in water affects the release of chemicals from microplastics, with larger molecular weight compounds having a greater inhibitory effect. Understanding these interactions is important for predicting how microplastics behave in natural water environments and the potential release of toxic additives.

2021 Environmental Research 21 citations
Review Tier 2

A critical review of interactions between microplastics, microalgae and aquatic ecosystem function

This review of microplastic-microalgae interactions found that microplastics form distinct epiplastic algal communities that differ from surrounding water communities, and that the interactions are bidirectional — MP properties affect algal physiology while algal surface coatings alter MP behavior and fate.

2020 Water Research 412 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactions of microplastics, dissolved organic matter, and coexisting pollutants: Mechanisms, environmental implications, and knowledge gaps

This review examines the three-way interactions between microplastics, dissolved organic matter, and coexisting pollutants, synthesizing how microplastic-DOM adsorption influences contaminant behavior and fate in the environment. The authors identify the dual roles of environmental DOM and microplastic-derived DOM in regulating pollutant adsorption, mobility, and toxicity as a critical knowledge gap.

2025 Environmental Research
Article Tier 2

Interactions between microplastics and organic compounds in aquatic environments: A mini review

Researchers reviewed the mechanisms of interaction between microplastics and organic compounds in aquatic environments, examining factors related to the plastics themselves, the organic compounds, and environmental conditions. The study found that properties like crystallinity, surface area, and weathering state of microplastics all influence how they adsorb and transport organic pollutants, with implications for environmental and health risk assessments.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 290 citations
Article Tier 2

Insights into the characteristics, adsorption and desorption behaviors of microplastics aged with or without fulvic acid

Researchers investigated how fulvic acid, a key component of dissolved organic matter, influences the aging, adsorption, and desorption behavior of microplastics under UV radiation, finding that water environmental factors significantly alter the surface properties and contaminant-binding capacity of aged microplastics.

2022 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Sequential interfacial contributions of microplastics to microbial adhesion and metal adsorption

Researchers uncovered the mechanistic sequence of interactions between microplastics, microorganisms, and metals in aquatic environments, finding that microbial adhesion to microplastic surfaces precedes and facilitates subsequent metal adsorption through temporal interfacial processes.

2025 The Science of The Total Environment
Article Tier 2

Influence of biofilms on the adsorption behavior of nine organic emerging contaminants on microplastics in field-laboratory exposure experiments

Researchers studied how natural biofilms that form on microplastics in lake water affect the adsorption of nine emerging organic contaminants. The study found that biofilm colonization on microplastic surfaces can significantly alter how these particles interact with pollutants, in some cases increasing and in others decreasing contaminant uptake compared to clean microplastics.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 49 citations
Article Tier 2

A multi-factor analysis evaluating the toxicity of microplastics on algal growth

This meta-analysis evaluated how microplastic characteristics such as polymer type, size, shape, and concentration influence algal growth, finding that effects range from inhibition to enhancement depending on multiple interacting factors.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Heterogeneous aggregation between microplastics and microalgae: May provide new insights for microplastics removal

Researchers investigated heterogeneous aggregation between microplastics and various microalgal species, elucidating the formation process and influencing factors, which may provide new insights for developing microplastic removal strategies from aquatic environments.

2023 Aquatic Toxicology 42 citations
Article Tier 2

Investigating the adsorption of organic compounds onto microplastics via experimental, simulation, and prediction methods

This review systematically examined experimental, simulation, and predictive modeling approaches for studying the adsorption of organic compounds onto microplastics, synthesizing findings on how molecular interactions, environmental conditions, and plastic aging affect microplastic vector behavior for organic pollutants.

2025 Environmental Science Processes & Impacts 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Micro/nano-plastics and microalgae in aquatic environment: Influence factor, interaction, and molecular mechanisms.

This review examined the interactions between micro/nanoplastics and microalgae in aquatic environments, summarizing how plastic particle size, surface chemistry, and co-pollutants influence algal toxicity through oxidative stress, photosynthesis inhibition, and gene expression changes.

2024 The Science of the total environment
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of organic pollutants and metals on micro/nanoplastics in the aquatic environment

This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics in aquatic environments adsorb organic pollutants and metals onto their surfaces, effectively acting as carriers for other contaminants. Researchers found that environmental factors like pH, salinity, and aging of the plastic significantly influence this sorption behavior. The findings raise concerns that microplastics may increase the bioavailability and toxicity of chemical pollutants in waterways.

2019 The Science of The Total Environment 685 citations