Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Harnessing CO₂ for the Development of Biodegradable Polymers: A Review of Innovations in Green Chemistry

This review covers recent advances in making biodegradable polymers from captured CO2, an approach that simultaneously reduces greenhouse gas emissions and creates plastic alternatives that break down more readily than conventional plastics. The authors survey catalyst development, polymerization methods, and material properties of CO2-derived polymers like polycarbonates and polyurethanes. While not about existing microplastic pollution, replacing conventional plastics with CO2-based biodegradable materials could reduce both carbon emissions and long-term microplastic accumulation in the environment.

2025 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Carbon-based adsorbents for micro/nano-plastics removal: current advances and perspectives

Scientists reviewed how carbon-based materials like graphene, activated carbon, and carbon nanotubes can be used to remove micro- and nanoplastics from water. Researchers found that these adsorbents show strong potential for capturing tiny plastic particles thanks to their tunable surface properties and high surface area. The study suggests that carbon-based filtration could become an important technology for cleaning microplastic-contaminated water.

2024 Water Emerging Contaminants & Nanoplastics 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Sustainable System for CO2 Capturing with Multiple Products

This paper is not about microplastics; it proposes a method for capturing and storing carbon dioxide using NaOH and CaCl2 chemistry, including electrolysis of seawater.

2023 Petroleum and Chemical Industry International 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollutants in water: A comprehensive review on their remediation by adsorption using various adsorbents

This review covers the different materials scientists are developing to filter microplastics out of water, including biochar, activated carbon, sponges, carbon nanotubes, and newer hybrid materials. Each material has trade-offs in terms of cost, effectiveness, and environmental impact, but combining different approaches shows the most promise. The research is important because better water filtration methods could directly reduce the amount of microplastics people consume through drinking water.

2024 Chemosphere 67 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent innovations in the developments of biopolymer-based materials for the removal of micro- and nanoplastics: A review of performance, critical factors, practicability and knowledge gaps

A review of recent innovations in biopolymer-based materials for various applications assessed how bio-derived polymers are being developed to reduce reliance on fossil-fuel plastics. The transition to biopolymers is relevant to reducing the long-term sources of microplastic pollution.

2025 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Innovations in the Development of Promising Adsorbents for the Remediation of Microplastics and Nanoplastics – A Critical Review

This review evaluates innovative materials being developed to remove microplastics and nanoplastics from polluted water, including carbon-based, metal, polymer, and mineral adsorbents. Researchers compared the effectiveness, advantages, and limitations of each type, finding that adsorption-based approaches show strong promise. The study highlights remaining challenges such as scaling these technologies for real-world water treatment applications.

2022 Water Research 136 citations
Article Tier 2

Application of carbon-based adsorbents in the remediation of micro- and nanoplastics

This review summarizes how carbon-based materials like activated carbon, biochar, and carbon nanotubes can be used to remove micro and nanoplastics from water through adsorption. These materials are attractive because they are low-cost, eco-friendly, and can be modified to improve their plastic-capturing ability. Better water filtration materials could help reduce the amount of microplastics that reach people through drinking water and food preparation.

2023 Journal of Environmental Management 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Carbon composites in the mitigation of micro and nanoplastics

This review examines how carbon composites -- including activated carbon, carbon nanotubes, graphene, and biochar-based materials -- can mitigate micro and nanoplastic pollution through physical adsorption, chemical binding, and photocatalytic degradation, analyzing the mechanisms, limitations, and scalability challenges of these approaches across field and laboratory studies.

2024 Physical Sciences Reviews
Article Tier 2

Activated char from the co-pyrolysis of polystyrene and olive stone mixtures for the adsorption of CO2

Not relevant to microplastics — this paper converts polystyrene yogurt containers and olive stones into activated carbon materials for CO2 capture, focusing on carbon sequestration rather than plastic particle contamination.

2023 Journal of environmental chemical engineering 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution in Oceans: A Barrier to Achieve Low Carbon Society

Microplastics in the ocean are not just a pollution problem — they may also impair the ocean's ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, undermining one of Earth's most important climate regulators. This review examines how ocean microplastic pollution interferes with carbon sequestration processes and argues that reducing plastic production and improving waste management are essential steps for both climate and environmental health.

2023 IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Technologies for Removal and Remediation of Microplastics

This book chapter reviews physical, chemical, biological, and hybrid technologies for removing microplastics from water, air, soil, and food environments. It systematically covers removal mechanisms and performance data for each technology type and discusses current limitations and future research directions.

2025
Article Tier 2

Recent advances in the research on effects of micro/nanoplastics on carbon conversion and carbon cycle: A review

This review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics are disrupting the global carbon cycle, the natural process that moves carbon through the environment. Microplastics interfere with the microorganisms that help convert and store carbon, and they reduce the ability of oceans and coastal ecosystems to absorb carbon dioxide. These disruptions could worsen climate change, which in turn affects food production and human well-being.

2023 Journal of Environmental Management 92 citations
Article Tier 2

Emerging Porous Materials for Adsorptive Removal of Microplastics and Nanoplastics from Aquatic Environments: A Review

This review summarizes recent advances in using porous materials, including sponges, aerogels, hydrogels, metal-organic frameworks, and carbon-based adsorbents, to remove microplastics and nanoplastics from water. Researchers found that adsorption using these materials is a promising, cost-effective approach that outperforms conventional water treatment methods for plastic particle removal. The study identifies key challenges and future research directions for developing practical adsorbents for real-world plastic pollution mitigation.

2025 ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Carbon Capture Utilization for Bio-Based Building Insulation Foams

This study explored using carbon dioxide captured from the atmosphere to make bio-based insulation foams as a greener alternative to petroleum-based building materials. Replacing fossil-fuel-derived plastics with biodegradable alternatives could reduce the long-term accumulation of microplastic pollution.

2021
Review Tier 2

Microplastic Removal from Water Using Biomass‐Based Carbon: A Review of Recent Advances

This review evaluates the potential of carbon materials derived from biomass, such as agricultural waste and wood, for removing microplastics from water. Researchers found that these materials offer advantages including low cost, abundant raw material sources, and effective removal capabilities. The study highlights biomass-derived carbon as a promising sustainable technology for addressing microplastic contamination in aquatic environments.

2025 Chemistry - An Asian Journal 4 citations
Article Tier 2

A critical review of microplastics and nanoplastics in wastewater: Insights into adsorbent-based remediation strategies

This review analyzes research on removing microplastics and nanoplastics from water using materials that absorb the particles, finding that adsorption is the most widely studied removal method. Carbon-based and metal-based materials currently dominate the research, but plant-based (biopolymer) adsorbents are gaining attention because they are biodegradable and non-toxic. Better removal technologies are critical because conventional water treatment often fails to capture the smallest plastic particles that pose the greatest risk to human health.

2025 Environmental Pollution 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Advanced Materials for Air Pollutants Removal in A Combustion System

This review covers advanced materials being developed to reduce air pollutants from combustion systems, including catalysts and sorbents for capturing CO2, volatile organic compounds, and particulate matter. Combustion-related fine particles share size overlap with airborne microplastics and similar health concerns. Improved air pollution control materials could help reduce the total burden of inhaled fine particles for people living near industrial sources.

2021 Open Scholarship Institutional Repository (Washington University in St. Louis)
Article Tier 2

9 Carbon composites in the mitigation of micro and nanoplastics

This review evaluates how carbon-based composite materials — including activated carbon and graphene derivatives — can be used to remove micro- and nanoplastics from water through adsorption, chemical binding, and photocatalytic degradation. Carbon composites show strong potential as versatile remediation tools, though scaling these technologies to real-world water treatment applications remains a key challenge.

2024 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Removal from Wastewater Using Biochar Based Composite

This book chapter describes how biochar-based composites can be used as adsorbents for removing microplastics from wastewater, reviewing the mechanisms of plastic particle capture and the performance of biochar materials compared to conventional treatment approaches.

2025
Article Tier 2

Developing Bioderived CO2-Responsive Polymers as Alternatives to Petroleum-derived Polymers

Researchers examined the development of bioderived, CO2-responsive polymers as sustainable alternatives to petroleum-derived plastics, using life cycle assessment principles and green chemistry frameworks to guide material design. The work addresses the environmental harms of petroleum-based plastic production and low recycling rates, proposing bio-based responsive polymers as a route toward materials with reduced environmental impact across their full lifecycle.

2025 QSpace (Queen's University Library)
Article Tier 2

Low-cost activated carbon from the pyrolysis of post-consumer plastic waste and the application in CO2 capture

Researchers prepared low-cost activated carbon from char residue generated during the pyrolysis of post-consumer plastic waste and tested its application for CO2 capture. The study demonstrates that plastic waste pyrolysis byproducts can be repurposed into useful porous materials, offering a dual benefit of chemical recycling and carbon capture.

2023 Process Safety and Environmental Protection 77 citations
Article Tier 2

Emerging Challenges from Plastics-Driven Climate Change

This review examines how the plastic life cycle — from fossil fuel extraction through manufacturing to disposal — generates substantial greenhouse gas emissions, while environmental microplastics disrupt ecosystems and reduce ocean carbon sequestration, creating a bidirectional link between plastic pollution and climate change.

2025 Preprints.org
Article Tier 2

Trends in the applications of biochar for the abatement of microplastics in water

This review examines how biochar can be used to remove microplastics and nanoplastics from water, summarizing recent advances in biochar modification strategies that improve adsorption capacity and minimize secondary pollution risks.

2025 Bioresource Technology Reports
Article Tier 2

Recent developments in microplastic contaminated water treatment: Progress and prospects of carbon-based two-dimensional materials for membranes separation

This review assessed recent advances in microplastic removal from contaminated water, covering physical, chemical, and biological treatment methods and their effectiveness across different plastic sizes, polymer types, and water chemistries. The authors identify membrane filtration and coagulation as among the most promising scalable approaches.

2022 Chemosphere 56 citations