Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Can Microplastics Accumulate Toxic dye in Water? An adsorption-desorption Study under Different Experimental Conditions

Researchers investigated the adsorption and desorption of the toxic dye Rhodamine B on polystyrene, polypropylene, and polyvinyl chloride microplastics under different experimental conditions. Results showed fast and substantial adsorption of the dye onto all three plastic types, with adsorption coefficients ranging from approximately 1,500 to 2,000, indicating microplastics can act as carriers of toxic dyes in aquatic environments.

2024 Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Experimental and Computational Insights into Congo Red Adsorption by Polyethylene and Polyethylene Terephthalate Microplastics

Researchers investigated the adsorption of Congo red dye onto polyethylene (PE) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) microplastics through laboratory experiments and computational modeling, finding that PE and PET exhibit distinct adsorption behaviors related to their differing surface chemistry. The study explores whether microplastics, though typically environmental hazards, could be valorized as low-cost adsorbents for textile dye removal from effluents.

2025
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of crystal violet on polystyrene microplastics in aqueous: optimization, modeling, and assessment of isotherms and kinetics

Researchers showed that polystyrene microplastics can efficiently absorb crystal violet dye — a toxic industrial dye — from water, with optimal removal near 85% under controlled conditions. The study highlights that microplastics don't just pollute on their own; they also act as sponges that carry harmful chemical contaminants through aquatic environments.

2025 Applied Water Science 9 citations
Article Tier 2

PVC microplastics as vectors for dye pollutants: Adsorption of rhodamine B and AI-based predictive modeling

Researchers studied the adsorption of Rhodamine B dye onto PVC microplastics under varying pH, concentration, and temperature conditions. PVC-MPs adsorbed substantial quantities of the dye through combined electrostatic and hydrophobic mechanisms, demonstrating their potential to transport organic contaminants through aquatic environments.

2025 Desalination and Water Treatment
Article Tier 2

Potential of Adsorption of Diverse Environmental Contaminants onto Microplastics

Researchers assessed the ability of four common types of microplastics to adsorb hazardous environmental contaminants including dyes and heavy metals. They found that dyes were adsorbed through physical processes while heavy metal adsorption varied by plastic type, with polystyrene showing the highest capacity for certain metals. The study confirms that microplastics can act as vectors for diverse pollutants, potentially increasing the environmental mobility and bioavailability of toxic substances.

2022 Water 43 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption properties of polyethylene microplastics as a function of their shape

Researchers investigated how the shape of polyethylene microplastics — comparing spheres, fragments, and films of comparable size (~100 µm) and surface area — affects their adsorption rate and capacity using methylene blue dye as a model sorbate. The study found that particle shape significantly influenced adsorption behaviour, highlighting an often-overlooked variable in assessments of microplastic interactions with environmental pollutants.

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

Response surface methodology for modeling the adsorptive uptake of phenol from aqueous solution using adsorbent polyethylene terephthalate microplastics

Researchers used response surface methodology to model the adsorption of phenol from water using pristine, modified, and aged polyethylene terephthalate (PET) microplastics, finding that microplastics can act as vectors for organic pollutants in aquatic environments.

2022 Chemical Engineering Journal Advances 33 citations
Article Tier 2

Understanding the interaction between selected microplastics and the toxic dye "Congo red" in water

Researchers studied how five common types of microplastics adsorb Congo Red dye from water, finding that high-density polyethylene had the highest adsorption capacity at nearly 22 milligrams per gram. The adsorption process followed different kinetic and isotherm models depending on the plastic type, and both surface area and chemical interactions played important roles. The study suggests that microplastics in contaminated waters can concentrate toxic dyes, potentially increasing environmental risks.

2025 Chemosphere 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Machine Learning to Predict the Adsorption Capacity of Microplastics

Researchers developed machine learning models to predict the adsorption capacity of microplastics for chemical pollutants, providing a computational tool to better understand how microplastics act as vectors for contaminant dispersal in aquatic environments.

2023 Nanomaterials 44 citations
Article Tier 2

Polyethylene microplastics as adsorbent of diazinon in aqueous environments: optimization, and modeling, isotherm, kinetics, and thermodynamic studies

This study found that polyethylene microplastics readily absorb diazinon, a common pesticide, from water -- removing up to 92% of the pesticide from clean water by binding it to their surface. While this might seem like removal, it means microplastics in the environment can concentrate pesticides and carry them into organisms, potentially increasing human exposure to harmful chemicals through contaminated water and food.

2024 Applied Water Science 32 citations
Article Tier 2

Rapidly Predicting Aqueous Adsorption Constants of Organic Pollutants onto Polyethylene Microplastics by Combining Molecular Dynamics Simulations and Machine Learning

Researchers developed a computational method combining molecular simulations with machine learning to rapidly predict how organic pollutants adsorb onto polyethylene microplastics in water. The approach accurately predicted adsorption behavior across different conditions including particle size, water salinity, and pH without requiring time-consuming laboratory experiments. The tool could help environmental scientists more quickly assess how microplastics interact with and transport chemical contaminants in aquatic environments.

2024 ACS ES&T Water 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of rhodamine B on polyvinyl chloride, polystyrene, and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics in aqueous environments

Researchers studied how three common types of microplastics absorb rhodamine B, a toxic dye, from water and found that PVC had the highest absorption capacity. Environmental factors like pH, salt concentration, and temperature significantly influenced how much dye the plastics could absorb. The findings suggest that microplastics in waterways may concentrate toxic chemicals on their surfaces, potentially increasing environmental and health risks beyond the plastics themselves.

2022 Environmental Technology & Innovation 84 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of aniline pollutant on polystyrene microplastics

Researchers investigated how polystyrene microplastics adsorb the pollutant aniline in aquatic environments, finding that particle size, temperature, and solution chemistry significantly influence adsorption behavior, highlighting microplastics' role as carriers of toxic organic compounds.

2023 Chemosphere 58 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of acid and basic dye from the simulated wastewater using carbonized microplastic particles synthesized from recycled polyethylene terephthalate plastic waste bottles: an integrated approach for experimental and practical applications

Researchers carbonized waste PET plastic bottles to create microplastic-like adsorbent particles and demonstrated their effectiveness in removing over 99% of methylene blue and methyl orange dyes from simulated wastewater, with adsorption optimized by response surface methodology and confirmed as exothermic, spontaneous, and applicable to real wastewater.

2023 AQUA - Water Infrastructure Ecosystems and Society 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in facial cleanser: extraction, identification, potential toxicity, and continuous-flow removal using agricultural waste–based biochar

Researchers extracted and identified polyethylene microbeads from a commercial facial cleanser, then tested whether these particles could carry toxic dyes. The microplastics readily adsorbed both methylene blue and methyl orange dye from water, confirming their potential to act as pollutant carriers. The study also demonstrated that biochar made from agricultural waste could effectively remove these microplastics from water in a continuous-flow system.

2023 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption–desorption behavior of methylene blue onto aged polyethylene microplastics in aqueous environments

Researchers photoaged polyethylene microplastics under xenon light and measured changes in surface properties and adsorption-desorption behavior for methylene blue dye, finding that aging increased surface oxidation, enhanced dye adsorption capacity, and altered desorption kinetics compared to virgin particles.

2021 Marine Pollution Bulletin 124 citations
Article Tier 2

Machine Learning to Predict the Adsorption Capacity for Microplastics

Researchers developed and compared three machine learning models — random forest, support vector machine, and artificial neural network — to predict microplastic/water partition coefficients (log Kd) for chemical pollutant adsorption, addressing the limited experimental data available on microplastic adsorption capacity in aquatic environments.

2023 Preprints.org 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Modelling of the adsorption of chlorinated phenols on polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate microplastic

This study modeled how chlorinated phenols — toxic water pollutants — stick to polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics sourced from personal care products. The findings suggest microplastics can act as carriers for harmful chemicals in aquatic environments, potentially concentrating toxins and delivering them to organisms that ingest the particles.

2019 Journal of the Serbian Chemical Society 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Predictive modeling of microplastic adsorption in aquatic environments using advanced machine learning models

Scientists used advanced machine learning models to predict how microplastics interact with and absorb organic pollutants in water. The results showed that microplastics with certain chemical properties attract more toxic compounds, which matters because contaminated microplastics in waterways can concentrate harmful chemicals that may eventually reach humans through drinking water and seafood.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Red mud/PVC composite as an efficient adsorbent for malachite green removal in fixed-bed column

Despite its title referencing a red mud/PVC composite adsorbent, this paper studies the removal of a toxic industrial dye (Malachite Green) from wastewater using a material that combines industrial waste with plastic — not microplastic pollution. It examines adsorption performance in a continuous flow system and is not relevant to microplastics or human health.

2026 Physicochemical Problems of Mineral Processing
Article Tier 2

Adsorption and Desorption Behaviour of Polychlorinated Biphenyls onto Microplastics’ Surfaces in Water/Sediment Systems

Researchers evaluated the adsorption and desorption behavior of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) onto polystyrene, polyethylene, and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics of varying sizes in marine water/sediment systems. Results showed that polymer type and particle size influenced PCB binding capacity, with microplastics acting as potential vectors for transferring persistent organic pollutants to marine biota through the food chain.

2020 Toxics 86 citations
Article Tier 2

Contaminated microplastics: adsorption/desorption of Rhodamine B and phase separation by electrocoagulation-flotation

Researchers studied the adsorption and desorption behavior of Rhodamine B dye onto microplastics under varying conditions, finding that contaminated microplastics can accumulate and later release dye pollutants in aquatic environments. The results contribute to understanding how microplastics serve as carriers for organic contaminants.

2024 LA Referencia (Red Federada de Repositorios Institucionales de Publicaciones Científicas)
Article Tier 2

Versatile in silico modelling of microplastics adsorption capacity in aqueous environment based on molecular descriptor and machine learning

Researchers developed machine learning models using molecular descriptors to predict the adsorption capacity of microplastics for organic pollutants in aqueous environments, achieving high accuracy across multiple polymer types and enabling faster environmental risk assessment.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Predicting aqueous sorption of organic pollutants on microplastics with machine learning

Researchers developed machine learning models to predict how organic pollutants bind to microplastics in water, using data from 475 published experiments. The models outperformed traditional approaches by accounting for properties of both the microplastics and the pollutants simultaneously. The study provides a more universal tool for understanding how microplastics can transport and concentrate harmful chemicals in freshwater systems.

2023 Water Research 76 citations