Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Characterization of microplastics and their interaction with antibiotics in wastewater

Researchers characterized microplastics in wastewater and investigated their interactions with antibiotics, examining how microplastic surfaces adsorb antibiotic compounds and the implications for antibiotic transport and dissemination in wastewater treatment systems.

2025 e_Buah
Article Tier 2

Microplastics play a minor role in tetracycline sorption in the presence of dissolved organic matter

Researchers studied the sorption of the antibiotic tetracycline onto microplastics in the presence of dissolved organic matter, finding that dissolved organics competed strongly for binding sites on microplastics, meaning real-world conditions substantially reduce microplastic uptake of tetracycline.

2018 Environmental Pollution 439 citations
Article Tier 2

High-sensitive determination of tetracycline antibiotics adsorbed on microplastics in mariculture water using pre-COF/monolith composite-based in-tube solid phase microextraction on-line coupled to HPLC-MS/MS

Researchers developed a highly sensitive method to detect antibiotic residues adsorbed onto microplastics in mariculture water, capable of measuring amounts as small as fractions of a picogram. Using this technique, they found that microplastics of different sizes carry varying amounts of tetracycline antibiotics, and that algal biofilms on the particles may influence antibiotic levels. The method opens new possibilities for understanding how microplastics transport chemical contaminants in aquatic environments.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Optimizing composite microplastics for antibiotics removal in water: An eco-friendly solution

Researchers investigated the adsorption of antibiotics ciprofloxacin and flucloxacillin onto PET and HDPE microplastics, characterizing the particles via FTIR, SEM, and EDX and fitting isotherm models to show that microplastics can serve as carriers of antibiotic pollutants in aquatic environments.

2025 Sustainable Environment
Article Tier 2

Study of microplastics as sorbents for rapid detection of multiple antibiotics in water based on SERS technology

Researchers used polyethylene microplastics as sorbents combined with surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technology to rapidly detect multiple antibiotic residues in water, demonstrating that microplastics' tendency to adsorb contaminants can be repurposed as a tool for environmental monitoring.

2022 Spectrochimica Acta Part A Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Magnetic nanocomposites: innovative adsorbents for antibiotics removal from aqueous environments–a narrative review

This review examines how magnetic nanocomposite materials can be used to remove pharmaceutical pollutants from water. While not directly about microplastics, the technology is relevant because microplastics in water often carry pharmaceutical residues that conventional treatment cannot fully remove. Better water filtration methods like these could help reduce human exposure to the cocktail of pollutants that microplastics transport.

2025 Applied Water Science 22 citations
Article Tier 2

The impact of chlorination on the tetracycline sorption behavior of microplastics in aqueous solution

Researchers found that chlorination, a common disinfection step in wastewater treatment, alters the surface chemistry of microplastics and changes their capacity to adsorb tetracycline antibiotics, with chlorinated microplastics showing modified sorption behavior that affects their role as antibiotic carriers.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Pollution characterization, adsorption, and SERS-based detection of enrofloxacin adsorbed on microplastics in aquaculture water

Researchers characterized microplastic pollution and enrofloxacin antibiotic adsorption in aquaculture pond water, then developed a SERS-based detection method using hydrophilic membrane enrichment to quantify the antibiotic on MP surfaces in environmental water samples.

2025 Environmental Research 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of antibiotics on microplastics

This study examined the adsorption of antibiotics onto different microplastic types, finding that sorption capacity depended on both the antibiotic's chemical properties and the plastic's surface characteristics, with implications for antibiotic transport in aquatic environments.

2018 Environmental Pollution 1314 citations
Article Tier 2

Implications of polystyrene and polyamide microplastics in the adsorption of sulfonamide antibiotics and their metabolites in water matrices

Researchers found that polystyrene and polyamide microplastics can absorb sulfonamide antibiotics from water, with smaller particles and acidic conditions increasing absorption significantly. This means microplastics in the environment can act as carriers for antibiotics, potentially spreading antimicrobial resistance. The finding raises concerns because people may be exposed to both microplastics and the drugs they carry through contaminated water and food.

2024 Aquatic Toxicology 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Remoção de antibióticos da água por nanofiltração

This paper is not about microplastics. It evaluates nanofiltration membrane technology for removing antibiotics (tetracycline, norfloxacin, and sulfamethoxazole) from water, achieving up to 95% removal. While water treatment technology is broadly relevant to contaminant removal, this study focuses specifically on pharmaceutical contamination rather than microplastic pollution or exposure.

2024 Revista Interdisciplinar de Ciência Aplicada
Article Tier 2

Sorption behavior of oxytetracycline on microplastics and the influence of environmental factors in groundwater: Experimental investigation and molecular dynamics simulation

This study examined how oxytetracycline antibiotic adsorbs onto different types of microplastics and how environmental factors such as pH, salinity, and UV exposure influence sorption behavior. The findings indicate microplastics can act as vectors transporting antibiotics through aquatic environments.

2024 Journal of Contaminant Hydrology 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption characteristics of antibiotics on microplastics: The effect of surface contamination with an anionic surfactant

Researchers found that the common anionic surfactant SDBS coating polystyrene and polyethylene microplastics significantly altered their adsorption of the antibiotics oxytetracycline and norfloxacin. SDBS changed the surface charge and hydrophobicity of MPs in ways that increased antibiotic binding, suggesting surfactant-contaminated MPs pose a greater risk as antibiotic vectors in aquatic environments.

2022 Chemosphere 48 citations
Article Tier 2

Chlorination-improved adsorption capacity of microplastics for antibiotics: A combined experimental and molecular mechanism investigation

Researchers found that when microplastics go through chlorine disinfection in water treatment plants, they become better at absorbing antibiotics like tetracycline. Chlorination changes the surface of polystyrene microplastics, making them stickier for these drugs through stronger chemical bonding. This means treated wastewater may contain microplastics loaded with antibiotics, potentially increasing health risks when released into the environment.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 32 citations
Article Tier 2

The fate and risk of microplastic and antibiotic sulfamethoxazole coexisting in the environment

Researchers investigated sulfamethoxazole antibiotic adsorption onto polyamide microplastics and found that pH significantly influenced uptake, with adsorbed antibiotics more readily released in natural water than ultrapure water, posing environmental risks.

2022 Environmental Geochemistry and Health 29 citations
Article Tier 2

Mechanistic insight into different adsorption of norfloxacin on microplastics in simulated natural water and real surface water

This study compared the adsorption of norfloxacin antibiotic onto microplastics in simulated natural water versus real surface water, finding that natural organic matter and competing ions in real water significantly reduced antibiotic uptake by microplastics.

2021 Environmental Pollution 81 citations
Article Tier 2

The Impact of Surface Chemistry and Synthesis Conditions on the Adsorption of Antibiotics onto MXene Membranes

Not relevant to microplastics — this study investigates how different synthesis methods affect the antibiotic adsorption performance of MXene (a 2D nanomaterial) membranes, a water treatment application unrelated to microplastic pollution.

2023 Molecules 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Interaction between antibiotics and microplastics: Recent advances and perspective

This review examines how microplastics in water can absorb antibiotic pollutants onto their surface, especially as the plastics age and develop bacterial biofilms. This interaction is concerning for human health because microplastics carrying antibiotics could promote antibiotic-resistant bacteria in waterways, making infections harder to treat.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 168 citations
Article Tier 2

Investigation of antibiotic clarithromycin adsorption potential on microplastics

Researchers investigated the adsorption potential of the antibiotic clarithromycin onto various microplastic types under controlled laboratory conditions, examining how surface properties and environmental factors influence pharmaceutical-microplastic interactions. The study found that microplastics can adsorb clarithromycin, raising concern about microplastics acting as vectors for antibiotic transport and spread in aquatic environments.

2024 Global NEST Journal
Article Tier 2

Identifying microplastic contamination in drinking water: analysis and evaluation using spectroscopic methods

Researchers developed analytical methods to identify and quantify microplastic contamination in drinking water, evaluating extraction efficiency and detection accuracy across different water types and plastic particle sizes. The study assessed health implications based on measured plastic loads in treated water.

2024 Interdisciplinary Environmental Review