Papers

20 results
|
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behaviour of microplastics on the heavy metal Cr(VI) before and after ageing

Researchers studied how UV aging affects the adsorption of hexavalent chromium onto PE, PS, and PA microplastics, finding that aged microplastics had significantly enhanced adsorption capacity due to increased surface area and functional group changes from weathering.

2022 Chemosphere 188 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption and Desorption Behavior of Cr(VI) on Two Typical UV-Aged Microplastics in Aqueous Solution

Researchers examined how UV weathering changes the ability of two common microplastic types (polyethylene and polystyrene) to adsorb and release chromium(VI) from contaminated water. UV aging altered surface chemistry and significantly increased adsorption capacity for the toxic heavy metal.

2024 Langmuir 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Aging amplifies synergistic adsorption and reduction of Cr(VI) by polyamide microplastics

Researchers found that UV and chemical aging of polyamide microplastics amplified their adsorption and reduction of hexavalent chromium Cr(VI), increasing oxygen-containing functional groups while reducing amide bonds, with Cr(VI) binding driven by electrostatic forces and hydrogen bonds and the aged microplastics able to reduce Cr(VI) to less toxic Cr(III) even under UV light and oxygen-depleted conditions.

2025
Article Tier 2

Adsorption mechanism of hexavalent chromium on electron beam-irradiated aged microplastics: Novel aging processes and environmental factors

Researchers used electron beam irradiation as a novel method to age polypropylene microplastics and then studied how these aged particles adsorb hexavalent chromium from water. They found that aging dramatically increased the microplastics' ability to bind chromium by generating oxygen-containing functional groups on their surfaces. The study highlights that weathered microplastics in the environment may have a significantly greater capacity to concentrate heavy metal pollutants than fresh plastic particles.

2024 Chemosphere 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Polyamide microplastics as better environmental vectors of Cr(VI) in comparison to polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics

Researchers found that polyamide microplastics adsorb more hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) than polyethylene or polystyrene microplastics, with UV aging increasing adsorption capacity, making polyamide particles potentially more dangerous environmental vectors for this toxic heavy metal.

2022 Marine Pollution Bulletin 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Comparison of Hexavalent Chromium Adsorption Behavior on Conventional and Biodegradable Microplastics

Researchers compared hexavalent chromium adsorption behavior on conventional versus biodegradable microplastics, finding that polymer chemistry and surface aging significantly affect chromium binding capacity and the risk of co-transport in contaminated environments.

2024 Water 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Aging properties of polyethylene and polylactic acid microplastics and their adsorption behavior of Cd(II) and Cr(VI) in aquatic environments

Researchers compared how polyethylene and polylactic acid (PLA) microplastics age in the environment and how that aging affects their ability to absorb heavy metals like cadmium and chromium from water. They found that aging changed the surface chemistry of both plastic types, increasing their capacity to pick up these toxic metals. The findings matter because aged microplastics in the environment may concentrate and transport more pollutants than fresh plastic particles.

2024 Chemosphere 28 citations
Article Tier 2

Study on the Adsorption Behavior and Mechanism of Heavy Metals in Aquatic Environment before and after the Aging of Typical Microplastics

Researchers investigated the adsorption behavior and mechanisms of heavy metals by typical microplastics before and after environmental aging, finding that aging significantly alters microplastics' surface properties and capacity to bind metals such as cadmium and lead in aquatic systems.

2024
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of UV aged microplastics on the heavy metals Pb(II) and Cu(II) in aqueous solutions

Researchers examined how UV aging affects the adsorption of lead and copper onto polypropylene, polyethylene, and polystyrene microplastics, finding that aging creates new oxidation functional groups that enhance heavy metal adsorption capacity.

2022 Chemosphere 130 citations
Article Tier 2

Aged Polystyrene Microplastics Accelerate the Photo-Reduction of Chromium(VI)

Researchers investigated how aged polystyrene microplastics interact with hexavalent chromium, a toxic heavy metal, in water under light conditions. They found that microplastics accelerate the conversion of toxic chromium(VI) to less harmful chromium(III), while the chromium in turn speeds up the aging of the microplastics. The study reveals a complex interplay between microplastics and heavy metals in aquatic environments that could influence the environmental fate of both pollutants.

2025 Water 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Aging mechanism of microplastics with UV irradiation and its effects on the adsorption of heavy metals

Researchers aged polystyrene microplastics using UV irradiation under three conditions (air, pure water, seawater) and found that aging changed surface chemistry and increased the microplastics' capacity to adsorb heavy metals, with seawater aging producing the most pronounced surface oxidation.

2020 Journal of Hazardous Materials 852 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption properties and mechanism of Cu(II) on virgin and aged microplastics in the aquatic environment

Researchers examined how UV aging changes the surface properties of polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics and affects their ability to adsorb copper ions in water. The study found that UV irradiation altered the physical and chemical characteristics of both plastic types, increasing their capacity to bind heavy metals. Evidence indicates that weathered microplastics may act as more effective carriers of heavy metal contaminants in aquatic environments compared to virgin plastics.

2024 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 10 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

How aging microplastics influence heavy metal environmental fate and bioavailability: A systematic review

This systematic review found that environmental aging (UV, weathering) degrades microplastics into smaller particles with higher surface reactivity, increasing their capacity to adsorb heavy metals. These aged microplastic-heavy metal complexes bioaccumulate through the food chain, posing greater ecological and human health risks than either pollutant alone.

2025 Environmental Research 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Change in adsorption behavior of aquatic humic substances on microplastic through biotic and abiotic aging processes

Researchers found that both UV irradiation and microbial aging of polyethylene microplastics significantly altered their surface chemistry, changing how aquatic humic substances adsorb onto the plastic surface and highlighting the importance of weathering state in assessing microplastic-contaminant interactions.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Sorption Behavior, Speciation, and Toxicity of Microplastic-Bound Chromium in Multisolute Systems

Researchers investigated how UV filters affect chromium sorption and toxicity on polystyrene microplastics, finding that UV irradiation and co-contaminants alter metal speciation and increase the ecological risk of microplastic-bound heavy metals.

2022 Environmental Science & Technology Letters 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Aging characteristics of polylatic acid microplastics and their adsorption on hydrophilic organic pollutants: mechanistic investigations and theoretical calculations

Researchers characterized how polylactic acid microplastics undergo UV and thermal aging in aquatic environments, finding that aging altered surface chemistry, increased hydrophilicity, and enhanced adsorption of heavy metal pollutants—raising concerns about aged biodegradable plastics as carriers of co-contaminants.

2025 Environmental Pollution 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of Pb(II) by UV-aged microplastics and cotransport in homogeneous and heterogeneous porous media

Researchers found that microplastics aged by UV sunlight are better at absorbing and carrying lead (a toxic heavy metal) through soil and water than fresh microplastics. The aging process changes the microplastic surface in ways that make it grab onto more lead, potentially spreading this toxic metal further through the environment. This is relevant to human health because aged microplastics in the real world may be transporting more heavy metals into water supplies and food-growing soil than previously thought.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 46 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of light irradiation on heavy metal adsorption onto microplastics

Researchers investigated how UV light irradiation of polypropylene microplastics affected their adsorption of lead (Pb) from water, finding that photo-weathering increased surface oxidation and significantly enhanced heavy metal adsorption capacity.

2021 Chemosphere 42 citations
Article Tier 2

Insight into the interactions between microplastics and heavy metals in agricultural soil solution: adsorption performance influenced by microplastic types

Environmental-simulating microplastics (aged under environmental conditions) showed higher cadmium and chromium adsorption capacity than commercial microplastics in agricultural soil solutions, with surface oxidation increasing adsorption—suggesting that aged microplastics are more effective co-transporters of heavy metals in contaminated agricultural soils.

2025 Environmental Science Processes & Impacts 3 citations
Article Tier 2

The mechanism for adsorption of Cr(VI) ions by PE microplastics in ternary system of natural water environment

Researchers investigated how polyethylene microplastics adsorb hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) from water in the presence of the surfactant sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS), finding that SDBS enhanced Cr(VI) adsorption at pH below 6 but competed with chromate ions for adsorption sites at pH above 6. Increasing PE microplastic dosage raised Cr(VI) adsorption capacity substantially, providing mechanistic insight into pollutant co-transport on microplastics in natural water systems.

2019 Environmental Pollution 119 citations