Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Impact of Minerals (Ferrihydrite and Goethite) and Their Organo-Mineral Complexes on Fate and Transport of Nanoplastics in the Riverine and Terrestrial Environments

Researchers studied how common iron minerals and their organic matter complexes affect the movement and fate of nanoplastics in river and soil environments. The study found that pure minerals had higher sorption capacity for nanoplastics than their organo-mineral counterparts, and goethite-based systems caused greater aggregation and retention of nanoplastics, suggesting that soil mineral composition plays an important role in nanoplastic transport.

2025 Environmental Science & Technology 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Impactof Minerals(Ferrihydrite and Goethite) andTheir Organo-Mineral Complexes on Fate and Transport of Nanoplasticsin the Riverine and Terrestrial Environments

Researchers investigated how iron minerals ferrihydrite and goethite, along with their organo-mineral complexes, influence the mobility and transport of nanoplastics in riverine and terrestrial environments, finding that organic matter coatings substantially alter nanoplastic behavior compared to pure mineral phases.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Comparative effects of crystalline, poorly crystalline and freshly formed iron oxides on the colloidal properties of polystyrene microplastics

Researchers found that freshly formed iron oxides caused the greatest aggregation of polystyrene microplastics in water, with effects decreasing in the order: freshly formed iron oxide > ferrihydrite > goethite > haematite. The findings suggest that iron oxide copresence can delay microplastic transport or alter their environmental fate depending on pH and crystallinity of the mineral.

2022 Environmental Pollution 35 citations
Article Tier 2

Both nanoplastic and iron mineral types determine their heteroaggregation: Aggregation kinetics and interface process

Researchers measured how four types of nanoplastics aggregate with iron minerals and found that surface chemistry drives the outcome — with PMMA forming the strongest heteroaggregates and carboxyl-modified particles the weakest — and that electron transfer from nanoplastics to hematite partially reduces iron, with implications for aquatic iron cycling.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of iron/aluminum (hydr)oxide and clay minerals on heteroaggregation and transport of nanoplastics in aquatic environment

Researchers examined how polystyrene nanoplastics interact with nine different minerals in aquatic environments, finding that positively charged iron and aluminum (hydr)oxide minerals readily form aggregates with nanoplastics through electrostatic and hydrophobic forces, while humic acid and shifting pH significantly suppress this aggregation.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 68 citations
Article Tier 2

Crystallinity- dependent heteroaggregation and co-sedimentation between polystyrene nanoplastics and iron (hydro)oxides

Researchers found that the crystallinity of iron (hydro)oxide minerals strongly governs their tendency to aggregate with polystyrene nanoplastics in water — higher crystallinity produces more positive surface charges, stronger electrostatic attraction, and greater hydrogen bonding with nanoplastics, ultimately controlling how and where these combined particles settle in aquatic environments.

2025 Journal of Environmental Management
Article Tier 2

Charge mediated interaction of polystyrene nanoplastic (PSNP) with minerals in aqueous phase

Researchers investigated how polystyrene nanoplastics interact with common soil and sediment minerals, finding that positively charged iron oxide minerals (goethite and magnetite) strongly adsorb nanoplastics via electrostatic attraction and hydrogen bonding, while negatively charged clay minerals do not — providing mechanistic insight into how nanoplastics may accumulate in iron-rich soils and sediments.

2020 Water Research 177 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of particle size and oxide phase on microplastic transport through iron oxide-coated sand

Researchers studied how different types of iron oxide coatings on sand affect the movement of polystyrene microplastics through soil. They found that magnetite-coated sand retained the most microplastics, while goethite-coated sand retained the least, with results matching theoretical predictions. The findings suggest that naturally iron-rich soils could serve as effective barriers to prevent microplastic transport through groundwater systems.

2024 Water Research 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Unveiling the crucial role of iron oxide transformation in simultaneous immobilization of nanoplastics and organic matter

Researchers tracked how nanoplastics become trapped during the transformation of dissolved iron into crystalline iron oxide minerals, finding that polystyrene nanoplastics become physically encased within forming crystals while humic acid stabilizes the system, creating a durable iron oxide-nanoplastic-organic matter composite that sequesters particles in sediments.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics interaction with feldspar and weathering originated secondary minerals (kaolinite and gibbsite) in the riverine environment

Researchers studied how nanoplastics interact with common river minerals (feldspar, kaolinite, and gibbsite) in freshwater environments. Nanoplastics adsorbed onto mineral surfaces, with the type of mineral and water chemistry affecting how strongly they stuck. Understanding these interactions helps predict how nanoplastics move through rivers and how available they are to living organisms.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Transport of nanoplastics in saturated iron oxide-coated gravel: Effects of flow velocity, ionic strength and surface property of nanoplastics

Researchers investigated nanoplastic transport through saturated iron oxide-coated gravel by varying flow velocity, ionic strength, and surface properties, finding that higher flow rates promoted nanoplastic transport, while ionic strength had opposing effects on negatively and positively charged particles depending on their surface chemistry.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials Advances
Article Tier 2

Effects of clay minerals on the transport of nanoplastics through water-saturated porous media

Column experiments with clay-containing saturated porous media showed that clay minerals reduced nanoplastic transport by enhancing particle retention through bridging flocculation and charge neutralization, with kaolinite having greater retention effects than montmorillonite, informing predictions of nanoplastic mobility in clay-rich soils.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 68 citations
Article Tier 2

Mechanisms of increased small nanoplastic particle retention in water-saturated sand media with montmorillonite and diatomite: Particle sizes, water components, and modelling

Researchers compared how clay minerals (diatomite and montmorillonite) affect the transport of 20 nm and 80 nm polystyrene nanoplastics through water-saturated sand columns, finding that very small nanoplastics (20 nm) can enter diatomite's porous lattice structure, enhancing their retention, while montmorillonite more broadly inhibited transport of both sizes.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of aggregation behavior on microplastic removal by magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles

Researchers investigated how magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles can remove nanoscale microplastics from water. They found that 83 to 93 percent of the plastic particles could be captured within one hour, with removal efficiency strongly linked to how the nanoparticles and plastics clump together. The study shows that water acidity and salt levels significantly influence the process, offering practical guidance for deploying magnetic cleanup technologies.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 60 citations
Article Tier 2

Interaction of polystyrene nanoplastics with impurity-bearing ferrihydrite and implication on complex particle sedimentation

Researchers investigated how aluminum-, manganese-, and silicon-bearing iron mineral (ferrihydrite) impurities influence its aggregation with polystyrene nanoplastics in water, finding that aluminum impurities strengthened electrostatic attraction and increased aggregation while silicon and manganese impurities reduced it, with all aggregates showing slower sedimentation than pure ferrihydrite.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 7 citations
Article Tier 2

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.

2025 Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Exposed facets mediated interaction of polystyrene nanoplastics (PSNPs) with iron oxides nanocrystal

Researchers investigated how the exposed crystal facets of hematite iron oxide affect adsorption of polystyrene nanoplastics, finding that the {012} surface was most favorable for nanoplastic adsorption due to higher hydroxyl group density, while {001} surfaces outperformed {100} surfaces. The results demonstrate that facet-dependent surface chemistry of iron minerals controls the environmental mobility and fate of nanoplastic particles.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Deposition behaviors and interfacial interaction mechanism between carboxyl-modified polystyrene nanoplastics and magnetite in aquatic environment

This study examined how solution chemistry (ionic strength, pH) and organic matter influence the deposition behavior of carboxyl-modified polystyrene nanoplastics onto iron (hydr)oxide mineral surfaces in aquatic environments. The results revealed that organic matter and solution chemistry strongly govern NP-mineral interfacial interactions and nanoplastic transport in subsurface environments.

2024 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Heteroaggregation and sedimentation of natural goethite and artificial Fe3O4 nanoparticles with polystyrene nanoplastics in water

Iron oxide nanoparticles -- both engineered magnetite and natural goethite -- were found to heteroaggregate and co-sediment with polystyrene nanoplastics in water, with humic acid and extracellular polymeric substances modifying aggregate formation.

2024 Carbon Research 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Heteroaggregation of PS microplastic with ferrihydrite leads to rapid removal of microplastic particles from the water column

Researchers investigated heteroaggregation between polystyrene microplastics and ferrihydrite iron mineral particles, finding that this aggregation process leads to rapid removal of microplastic particles from the water column, with implications for understanding microplastic fate and transport in natural water systems.

2022 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)