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20 resultsShowing papers similar to A simple methodology for in situ study of microplastics’ aggregation
ClearA review of microplastics aggregation in aquatic environment: Influence factors, analytical methods, and environmental implications
This review examines how microplastics clump together in aquatic environments, a behavior called aggregation that affects where they end up and how available they are to organisms. Researchers evaluated the factors that influence aggregation, including water chemistry, particle size, and the presence of natural organic matter. The study identifies important gaps in field research and calls for standardized methods to better understand how aggregation shapes the environmental fate of microplastics.
Heterogeneous aggregation of microplastics and mineral particles in aquatic environments: Effects of surface functional groups, pH, and electrolytes
Researchers studied how microplastics clump together with soil and rock minerals in water, finding that positively charged minerals bound to plastic particles nearly three times more effectively than clay minerals, and that low pH and calcium ions dramatically accelerated aggregation. Understanding these dynamics helps predict where microplastics will settle or stay suspended in rivers, lakes, and aquifers.
Aggregation kinetics of microplastics in aquatic environment: Complex roles of electrolytes, pH, and natural organic matter
Researchers found that the aggregation behavior of polystyrene microplastics in water was strongly influenced by pH, ionic strength, and the presence of natural organic matter, with divalent cations like calcium and magnesium promoting aggregation. Understanding aggregation kinetics is critical for predicting how microplastics partition between suspended and settled states in natural water bodies.
Sedimentation behavior of aggregated microplastics: Influence of particle size and water constituents in environmental waters
Laboratory experiments investigated how aggregation of microplastics with sediments and organic matter affects their sinking rates in water, finding that aggregate composition strongly influences settling velocity. These findings improve models predicting whether microplastics sink to the seafloor or remain suspended in the water column.
Aggregation behavior of polyethylene microplastics in the nearshore environment: The role of particle size, environmental condition and turbulent flow
Researchers investigated how particle size, salinity, dissolved organic matter, and turbulent flow affect the aggregation behavior of polyethylene microplastics in nearshore water, finding that all factors influenced aggregation rates and aggregate structure. Understanding microplastic aggregation in estuarine environments is essential for predicting their sedimentation and biological uptake.
Settling behavior of microplastic hetero-aggregates in aquatic environments with varying salinity
This lab study examined how changes in water saltiness affect whether microplastics clump together with sediment and sink. Increasing salinity encouraged microplastics to form larger aggregates with sediment particles, peaking at moderate salt levels (25 PSU), which influences how quickly they settle out of the water column. Understanding this behavior matters for predicting where microplastics end up in coastal and estuarine environments where fresh and salt water mix.
Environmental factors-mediated behavior of microplastics and nanoplastics in water: A review
This review examines how environmental conditions such as pH, salt levels, and organic matter influence how microplastics and nanoplastics behave in water. The study found that these factors significantly affect whether tiny plastic particles clump together or stay dispersed, which in turn determines how far they travel and how available they are for organisms to ingest.
Quantitative study of microplastic degradation in urban hydrosystems: Comparing in situ environmentally aged microplastics vs. artificially aged materials generated via accelerated photo-oxidation
Researchers compared how polyethylene microplastics degrade in real urban water environments versus under controlled laboratory UV exposure. They found that lab-aged plastics showed primarily physical and chemical changes from UV light, while microplastics collected from stormwater and sediments also showed signs of biological degradation and hydrolysis. The study demonstrates that artificial aging alone does not fully replicate the complex degradation processes microplastics undergo in actual urban water systems.
Heteroaggregation kinetics of oppositely charged nanoplastics in aquatic environments: Effects of particle ratio, solution chemistry, and interaction sequence
Researchers investigated how oppositely charged nanoplastics clump together (heteroaggregation) in water under varying pH, salt, and natural organic matter conditions, finding that electrostatic attraction drives aggregation but humic acid retards it more than sodium alginate, while the sequence and timing of chemical interactions also significantly alters the final aggregation behavior.
Photoaging alters the aggregation behavior of functionalized nanoplastics differently: effects of leached organic matter and surface properties changes
This study found that UV photoaging of nanoplastics changes their surface chemistry and causes them to release organic compounds, but the downstream effect on how particles clump together (aggregation) differs markedly depending on what chemical groups are on the particle surface. This matters because aggregation behaviour controls whether nanoplastics sink or stay suspended in water, affecting which organisms are exposed and how far the particles travel.
Aggregation kinetics of UV irradiated nanoplastics in aquatic environments
Researchers compared the aggregation behavior of fresh versus UV-aged polystyrene nanoplastics under various aquatic conditions. They found that UV aging altered the surface chemistry of nanoplastics, making them more stable in water and less likely to aggregate, which means they could remain suspended and bioavailable for longer periods. The study suggests that weathered nanoplastics may behave very differently from fresh particles in the environment, complicating risk assessments.
A new approach for the agglomeration and subsequent removal of polyethylene, polypropylene, and mixtures of both from freshwater systems – a case study
A two-step pH-based process was developed to make polyethylene and polypropylene microplastic particles clump together and sink in fresh water, enabling their physical removal. This approach offers a potentially practical and chemical-free method for removing microplastics from freshwater systems.
Exposure Order to Photoaging and Humic Acids Significantly Modifies the Aggregation and Transformation of Nanoplastics in Aqueous Solutions
Researchers discovered that the order in which nanoplastics are exposed to sunlight and natural organic matter significantly changes how they clump together and behave in water. Nanoplastics aged by sunlight before encountering humic acids behaved differently than those exposed in the reverse order. This finding is important for predicting how nanoplastics actually move and persist in real-world water environments.
Microplastics and Nanoplastics in Aquatic Environments: Aggregation, Deposition, and Enhanced Contaminant Transport
This review examined the aggregation, deposition, and transport of microplastics and nanoplastics in aquatic environments, synthesizing how particle properties and water chemistry govern their fate and mobility in rivers, lakes, and oceans.
How do microplastics interact with other particles in aquatic environments?
This study investigates how microplastics interact with other particles in aquatic environments, examining the physical and chemical mechanisms governing aggregation, adsorption, and co-transport of microplastics with suspended particles. The research is hosted on the Experiment platform for open scientific discovery funding and sharing.
Heteroaggregation of nanoplastic particles in the presence of inorganic colloids and natural organic matter
Nanoplastics were found to heteroaggregate extensively with inorganic colloids and natural organic matter in both freshwater and marine conditions, altering their size, surface charge, and settling behavior compared to pristine particles. The study demonstrates that nanoplastic behavior in natural waters is dominated by interactions with other environmental constituents rather than the intrinsic properties of the plastic alone.
Aggregation in experimental studies with microparticles: Experimental settings change particle size distribution during exposure
Researchers investigated how experimental conditions including exposure duration, particle concentration, organic carbon content, and test organism presence affect microplastic aggregation in ecotoxicological experiments, finding that particle size distribution changed substantially during experiments. Failure to account for aggregation during exposure leads to inconsistent and unreliable toxicity results across studies.
Influence of typical clay minerals on aggregation and settling of pristine and aged polyethylene microplastics
Researchers investigated how common clay minerals affect the aggregation and settling behavior of pristine and aged polyethylene microplastics in water. They found that high salt concentrations promoted the settling of microplastics when clay minerals were present, and that electrostatic repulsion was the dominant force governing interactions between plastics and clay particles. The findings provide new insights into how microplastics are transported and deposited in natural water systems.
UV-weathering affects heteroaggregation and subsequent sedimentation of polystyrene microplastic particles with ferrihydrite
UV weathering of polystyrene microplastics significantly altered their surface properties, increasing heteroaggregation with ferrihydrite iron colloids and accelerating particle sedimentation compared to pristine PS—demonstrating that environmental weathering substantially changes microplastic fate and removal in aquatic systems.
Effects of different oxidants on the behaviour of microplastic hetero-aggregates
Researchers studied how different oxidants (ozone, chlorine, UV) affect the aggregation and settling behavior of microplastics in water treatment, finding that oxidation altered surface chemistry and changed hetero-aggregate formation with natural particles. The results have implications for predicting microplastic removal efficiency in drinking water and wastewater treatment plants.