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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Accelerated photoaging of microplastic - polyethylene terephthalate: physical, chemical, morphological properties and pesticide adsorption
ClearPhysicochemical transformation and toxic potential of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fragments exposed to natural daylight
Researchers exposed PET plastic fragments to natural sunlight and studied how weathering changed their chemistry and toxicity. They found that sun-aged PET released a more complex mixture of chemicals, including plasticizers and metals like antimony, and became significantly more toxic to marine microalgae and bacteria. The findings highlight that plastic degradation in the environment does not make it harmless but can actually increase the danger posed by leached substances.
Photo-induced degradation of single-use polyethylene terephthalate microplastics under laboratory and outdoor environmental conditions
Researchers tested how sunlight, water, and physical wear work together to break down PET microplastics, the type commonly found in plastic bottles and food packaging. Over 60 days, combined UV light and water exposure caused significant chemical degradation of the plastic surfaces. This matters because as microplastics break down in the environment, they release smaller fragments and potentially harmful chemicals that are easier for organisms to absorb.
Aging assessment of microplastics (LDPE, PET and uPVC) under urban environment stressors
Researchers aged LDPE, PET, and uPVC microplastics using ozone, UV-C, and solar radiation to simulate urban environmental stressors, finding that each aging agent produced distinct changes in surface morphology, chemical structure, and crystallinity that could alter particle behavior in the environment.
Aging behavior of microplastics accelerated by mechanical fragmentation: alteration of intrinsic and extrinsic properties
Researchers mechanically fragmented polystyrene, polypropylene, and PET microplastics to simulate environmental aging, finding that fragmentation alters surface chemistry, crystallinity, and heavy metal adsorption capacity, with aging degree measurable through structural changes.
A comprehensive review of microplastic aging: Laboratory simulations, physicochemical properties, adsorption mechanisms, and environmental impacts
This review examines how microplastics change as they age in the environment through exposure to sunlight, water, and chemicals, becoming rougher and more chemically reactive over time. Aged microplastics absorb more pollutants than fresh ones and release harmful additives and free radicals, meaning the microplastics people encounter in the real world may be more dangerous than the pristine particles typically used in lab studies.
Changes in the Chemical Composition of Polyethylene Terephthalate under UV Radiation in Various Environmental Conditions.
Researchers exposed polyethylene terephthalate (PET) to UV radiation under controlled humidity conditions and tracked changes in its chemical composition, finding progressive oxidation and chain scission that alter the polymer's surface properties. Understanding how PET degrades under UV exposure is important for predicting how PET microplastics form and what chemical changes make them more or less bioavailable.
Photoaging effects on polyethylene microplastics: Structural changes and chlorpyrifos adsorption
Researchers studied how UVB-induced photoaging changes the properties of polyethylene microplastics and their ability to absorb the pesticide chlorpyrifos. They found that aged microplastics absorbed nearly 18% more pesticide than pristine ones, due to the formation of oxygen-containing surface groups, increased surface roughness, and reduced crystallinity. The findings suggest that weathered microplastics in the environment may pose greater risks as carriers of harmful pesticides.
From Macro to Micro Plastics; Influence of Photo-oxidative Degradation
This study used simulated UV aging to investigate how photo-oxidative degradation of common plastics drives fragmentation from macro to micro scale, characterizing the surface property changes and structural breakdown that generate microplastic particles in the environment.
Study on the impact of photoaging on the generation of very small microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) and the wettability of plastic surface
Experiments using UV light to artificially age six common plastic types showed that sunlight (photoaging) accelerates the breakdown of plastics into very small microplastics and nanoplastics and makes plastic surfaces rougher and more chemically reactive. Understanding how different polymer structures respond to light aging is important for predicting which plastics will fragment fastest in the environment and generate the most hazardous small particles.
The fate, impacts and potential risks of photoaging process of the microplastics in the aqueous environment
This review examines how ultraviolet light from sunlight causes microplastics in water to age and change their physical and chemical properties, including surface texture, chemical structure, and water-repelling ability. Researchers found that photoaged microplastics become better at carrying other pollutants and may pose greater environmental risks than fresh plastics. The study highlights that aged microplastics can also increase biological toxicity and human exposure risks compared to their original form.
Recent advances on microplastic aging: Identification, mechanism, influence factors, and additives release
This review found that environmental aging transforms microplastic surface properties through abrasion, chemical oxidation, UV irradiation, and biodegradation, altering their environmental behavior and ecological risk. Aging also triggers the release of toxic plastic additives, but significant gaps remain between laboratory aging simulations and real-world conditions.
Insights into the Photoaging Behavior of Microplastics: Environmental Fate and Ecological Risk
This review examines how sunlight ages microplastics in the environment, breaking them into smaller pieces and changing their surface chemistry in ways that make them more toxic and more likely to carry other pollutants. Sun-aged microplastics release dissolved organic matter that can harm aquatic life, and their roughened surfaces attract more bacteria and chemical contaminants. Since most microplastics in nature have been exposed to sunlight, their real-world health risks may be higher than studies using fresh lab plastics suggest.
Photochemical Oxidation of Polyethylene Terephthalate Microplastics Adsorbed on Sand and Silica Surfaces
This study examined the photochemical oxidation of PET microplastics adsorbed on sand and silica surfaces under UV irradiation, focusing on the products released into water. Surface-bound PET underwent oxidative fragmentation, releasing soluble organic compounds, with implications for understanding the environmental chemistry of microplastic-contaminated sediments.
Progress on the photo aging mechanism of microplastics and related impact factors in water environment
This review examined the photo-aging mechanisms of microplastics in aquatic environments, finding that solar UV radiation drives oxidation reactions that alter surface chemistry, fragment particles further, and enhance their capacity to adsorb and release co-occurring pollutants.
Contaminant release from aged microplastic
Researchers exposed recycled plastic granules of polyethylene, PVC, and polystyrene to simulated aging conditions including UV radiation and high temperatures. They found that aging significantly increased the rate at which chemical additives leached from the plastic particles into water, with UV exposure having the greatest effect. The study highlights that weathered microplastics in the environment may release harmful chemicals at much higher rates than fresh plastic materials.
Investigating the Physicochemical Property Changes of Plastic Packaging Exposed to UV Irradiation and Different Aqueous Environments
Researchers investigated UV-driven degradation of polypropylene and PET packaging materials under different aqueous conditions, finding that UV exposure caused significant physicochemical changes including increased crystallinity and surface cracking that contribute to microplastic formation.
Photoaging of polyethylene microplastic and its effect on the chlorpyrifos adsorption
This study examined how UV-B radiation ages polyethylene microplastics over time and how that aging changes their ability to adsorb the pesticide chlorpyrifos. Photoaging modified the surface chemistry and structure of the plastic, altering its interaction with the pesticide, suggesting that weathered microplastics in aquatic environments may carry different — and potentially higher — loads of toxic chemicals than fresh particles. This "Trojan horse" effect is important for understanding how microplastics contribute to broader chemical contamination of waterways.
Effect of sunlight aging on physicochemical properties and sorption capacities of environmental microplastics: implications for contamination by PAHs
Researchers studied how sunlight aging changes the physical and chemical properties of three common plastics -- polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene -- and their ability to absorb pollutants. They found that plastics exposed to outdoor sunlight for 69 days absorbed up to 3.5 times more of the carcinogenic compound pyrene compared to new plastics, likely due to surface changes from weathering. The findings suggest that older, weathered microplastics in the environment may accumulate harmful pollutants more readily than fresh plastic particles.
Physicochemical and biological ageing processes of (micro)plastics in the environment: a multi-tiered study on polyethylene
Researchers applied a multi-tiered approach combining laboratory aging, field deployment, and environmental simulation to study how polyethylene plastic undergoes physicochemical and biological weathering in natural settings. The study found that UV radiation and microbial colonization act synergistically to accelerate surface oxidation and fragmentation of PE into smaller particles.
Rheological Characterization of UV and Shear‐Induced Degradation of Poly(Ethylene Terephthalate): Linking Environmental and Processing Histories to Recyclability
Researchers studied how UV light exposure and mechanical processing degrade PET plastic at the molecular level. They found that UV aging in water environments causes the plastic chains to break apart, while dry conditions promote crosslinking, and that even a single round of recycling processing dramatically reduces crystal size and releases volatile byproducts. The study reveals that both environmental weathering and recycling significantly weaken PET's mechanical properties, which has implications for both microplastic generation and plastic recyclability.
Fragmentation of polypropylene into microplastics promoted by photo-aging; release of metals, toxicity and inhibition of biodegradability
This study showed that when polypropylene plastic ages in sunlight, it fragments into microplastics much faster and releases metal contaminants that were originally added during manufacturing. The resulting particles and chemical leachates were toxic to aquatic organisms and resistant to biodegradation, meaning aged plastics in the environment are more hazardous than fresh ones.
Developing environmentally relevant test materials for microplastic research through UV-induced photoaging
Researchers used UV irradiation to create photoaged microplastics from multiple polymer types as environmentally relevant test materials for ecotoxicology research, characterizing how aging changes surface chemistry, particle size distribution, and potential biological effects.
Enhanced sorption of the UV filter 4-methylbenzylidene camphor on aged PET microplastics from both experimental and theoretical perspectives
The aging process of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) microplastics was studied by examining how weathering changes their surface morphology and ability to sorb the sunscreen chemical 4-methylbenzylidene camphor (4-MBC). Aged PET showed enhanced sorption of 4-MBC compared to pristine PET, indicating that environmental weathering increases the capacity of microplastics to accumulate organic contaminants.
Simulated experimental investigation of microplastic weathering in marine environment
Researchers simulated microplastic weathering under marine conditions, finding that exposure to UV light, saltwater, and mechanical abrasion progressively degraded plastic surfaces, increased surface roughness, and enhanced the adsorption capacity of contaminants onto microplastic particles.