Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Effects of particle size and solution chemistry on Triclosan sorption on polystyrene microplastic

Researchers characterized how the antimicrobial compound triclosan adsorbs onto polystyrene microplastics, finding that sorption is driven primarily by hydrophobic interactions and is highest at acidic pH, while temperature, ionic strength, and co-occurring heavy metals had little effect — suggesting polystyrene acts as an environmental carrier for triclosan.

2019 Chemosphere 206 citations
Article Tier 2

Does triclosan adsorption on polystyrene nanoplastics modify the toxicity of single contaminants?

Researchers investigated whether triclosan adsorption onto polystyrene nanoplastics modifies the toxicity of each contaminant individually, using a multi-tiered approach to assess how nanoplastic carrier effects alter the combined hazard of this common antimicrobial agent in aquatic environments.

2020 Environmental Science Nano 27 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of microplastic size on the adsorption behavior and mechanism of triclosan on polyvinyl chloride

The adsorption of triclosan (an antimicrobial compound) onto polyvinyl chloride microplastics was found to depend strongly on microplastic particle size, with smaller particles adsorbing more triclosan per unit mass due to their higher surface-area-to-volume ratio. This size-dependent sorption behavior influences the potential for microplastics to transport antimicrobial chemicals in aquatic environments.

2019 Environmental Pollution 348 citations
Article Tier 2

Insights into the interaction mechanism of ofloxacin and functionalized nano-polystyrene.

This study investigated how the antibiotic ofloxacin interacts with functionalized polystyrene nanoplastics, finding that surface charge and functional groups on the nanoplastics strongly influenced binding strength and mechanisms. The results improve understanding of how nanoplastics can act as carriers for antibiotics in the environment, potentially altering their fate and biological effects.

2023 Spectrochimica acta. Part A, Molecular and biomolecular spectroscopy
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of triclosan by different microplastics and the impact of water chemistry

Researchers investigated how triclosan — an antimicrobial compound — adsorbs onto four types of microplastics under varying water chemistry conditions. They found hydrophobic partitioning was the dominant adsorption mechanism, with solution pH, ionic strength, and dissolved organic matter all influencing uptake capacity.

2025 Journal of Contaminant Hydrology
Article Tier 2

The sorption behavior of triclosan on microplastics: aging effects and mechanisms

Researchers investigated how environmental aging processes change the ability of polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene microplastics to absorb the antimicrobial compound triclosan. They found that aging increased sorption capacity for polyethylene but decreased it for polypropylene, with polystyrene showing mixed results depending on the aging method. The changes were driven by modifications to surface chemistry, particularly the introduction of oxygen-containing functional groups that alter hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions.

2025 Chemical Engineering Journal 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Can Polylactic Acid (PLA) Act as an Important Vector for Triclosan?

This study tested whether polylactic acid acts as a carrier for the antimicrobial compound triclosan, comparing PLA with polystyrene, PVC, and polyethylene of different particle sizes. PLA showed lower triclosan adsorption than non-biodegradable polymers, but its carrier capacity increased under acidic conditions, with implications for how biodegradable microplastics transport chemical contaminants.

2022 Sustainability 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of biofilm formation on triclosan adsorption by UV-aged and pristine polystyrene microplastics in aquatic environments

Researchers investigated how biofilm formation on UV-aged versus pristine polystyrene microplastics affected triclosan adsorption, finding that biofilm-colonized aged microplastics had altered surface properties that changed triclosan uptake compared to unaged particles.

2025 Water Research X 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior and quantum chemical analysis of surface functionalized polystyrene nano-plastics on gatifloxacin.

Researchers studied how three types of polystyrene nanoplastics — unmodified, amino-modified, and carboxyl-modified — adsorb the antibiotic gatifloxacin, finding that surface chemistry strongly influences uptake. This matters because nanoplastics that absorb antibiotics could serve as vectors carrying these pharmaceuticals into aquatic ecosystems and the organisms that live there.

2024 Environmental science and pollution research international
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of triclosan onto different aged polypropylene microplastics: Critical effect of cations

This study examined how sodium and calcium ions in water influence the adsorption of triclosan onto aged polypropylene microplastics, finding that cation type and concentration altered sorption behavior through electrostatic interactions. The results have implications for understanding how microplastics transport antimicrobial contaminants in natural water systems.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 192 citations
Article Tier 2

Interaction mechanism of triclosan on pristine microplastics

Researchers used computational chemistry to model how the antimicrobial chemical triclosan interacts with five common types of pristine microplastics at the molecular level. They found that triclosan attaches to all microplastic surfaces through physical adsorption rather than chemical bonding, with polyamide showing the strongest attraction. The study provides molecular-level evidence that microplastics can act as carriers for personal care product chemicals in water environments.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 17 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

Comparative study on the adsorption and desorption behaviors of quinolone pollutants on polystyrene microplastics of different particle sizes

Researchers compared how polystyrene microplastics of different particle sizes adsorb and release the antibiotic pollutants ciprofloxacin and gatifloxacin. The study found that smaller microplastics had higher adsorption capacity due to greater surface area and charge, and that pollutants were harder to release from smaller particles, suggesting that fine microplastics may more effectively transport antibiotic contaminants through aquatic environments.

2025 Environmental Technology & Innovation 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Sorption Behavior of Trace Organic Chemicals on Carboxylated Polystyrene Nanoplastics

Researchers studied how polystyrene nanoplastics with a surface coating absorb various chemicals, including pesticides, a common antidepressant, and industrial pollutants. The nanoplastics effectively picked up all the chemicals tested, with absorption rates varying based on the chemical properties of each compound. This is important because it shows nanoplastics in the environment can concentrate a wide range of harmful chemicals on their surfaces, potentially delivering them in higher doses to organisms that ingest them.

2024 ACS ES&T Water 11 citations
Article Tier 2

A spectroscopic and theoretical investigation of interaction mechanisms of tetracycline and polystyrene nanospheres under different conditions

Researchers investigated how the antibiotic tetracycline adsorbs onto polystyrene nanoplastics under varying environmental conditions, finding that humic acid enhanced adsorption capacity while magnesium ions inhibited it at higher pH, with the interaction driven by electrostatic attraction, π-π stacking, and hydrophobic effects — suggesting nanoplastics can serve as antibiotic carriers in aquatic environments.

2019 Environmental Pollution 88 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactions of microplastics and organic compounds in aquatic environments: A case study of augmented joint toxicity

Researchers investigated how polystyrene microplastics interact with the antimicrobial compound triclosan in simulated environmental and cellular conditions. They found that surface-functionalized microplastics adsorbed significantly more triclosan and released it under cellular conditions, with the combination producing greater toxicity to human intestinal cells than either contaminant alone. The study suggests that microplastics can amplify the harmful effects of co-occurring organic pollutants.

2021 Chemosphere 77 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastic adsorption characteristics of bisphenol A: The roles of pH, metal ions, and suspended sediments

Researchers found that nanoplastics adsorb bisphenol A through electrostatic, pi-pi stacking, and hydrophobic interactions, with adsorption capacity influenced by pH, competing metal ions, and suspended sediments, highlighting nanoplastics as vectors for BPA transport in aquatic environments.

2022 Marine Pollution Bulletin 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Interfacial interaction between micro/nanoplastics and typical PPCPs and nanoplastics removal via electrosorption from an aqueous solution

Researchers synthesized nanoscale polystyrene particles and investigated how they adsorb common pharmaceuticals and personal care products, specifically ciprofloxacin and bisphenol A. The study also explored electrosorption as a method for removing nanoplastics from water, providing insights into both the environmental behavior of nanoplastics and potential remediation strategies.

2020 Water Research 282 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

Sorption of tetracycline antibiotics by microplastics, associated mechanisms, and risk assessments

Researchers systematically investigated how three common microplastic types adsorb tetracycline antibiotics. The study found that polystyrene had the highest adsorption capacity at 178.57 micrograms per gram, followed by PVC and polyethylene, and that PVC and polystyrene strongly retained the antibiotics with minimal desorption, raising concerns about compound pollution from microplastic-antibiotic combinations in the environment.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 16 citations