Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

The Removal and Mitigation Effects of Biochar on Microplastics in Water and Soils: Application and Mechanism Analysis

This review examines how biochar can be used to both remove microplastics from water and mitigate their harmful effects in soils. Researchers found that woody biochar was the most effective type for adsorbing microplastics, while also helping to restore soil enzyme activities and microbial communities disrupted by plastic contamination. The study calls for further research into optimizing biochar applications and understanding the long-term environmental implications of biochar-microplastic interactions.

2024 Sustainability 18 citations
Article Tier 2

How biochar works, and when it doesn't: A review of mechanisms controlling soil and plant responses to biochar

This comprehensive review synthesizes 20 years of research on biochar, a charcoal-like material made from organic waste that can improve soil health and reduce pollution. Biochar can reduce plant uptake of heavy metals by 17-39% and increase nutrient availability, making it potentially useful for cleaning up microplastic-contaminated soils. While not directly about microplastics, the findings are relevant because biochar could help mitigate the effects of soil pollutants that microplastics carry and concentrate.

2021 GCB Bioenergy 872 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of biochar on microplastics penetration treatment within soil porous medium under the wetting-drying cycles and optimisation of soil-biochar mixing format

Researchers tested whether plant-based biochar mixed into soil could prevent microplastics from moving deeper into the ground during repeated wetting and drying cycles that mimic seasonal rainfall. They found that biochar significantly improved microplastic retention in the soil, and experimented with different soil-biochar mixing configurations to optimize performance. The study suggests that biochar amendments could be a practical strategy for reducing microplastic migration through agricultural soils.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 18 citations
Review Tier 2

Advancing modified biochar for sustainable agriculture: a comprehensive review on characterization, analysis, and soil performance

This review covers how biochar, a carbon-rich material made from organic waste, can be modified to improve soil health and crop growth. While not directly about microplastics, modified biochar has been studied as a potential tool for absorbing and immobilizing microplastics in contaminated soil. Understanding how to optimize biochar properties could help develop strategies for reducing microplastic uptake by food crops.

2025 Biochar 42 citations
Article Tier 2

Advances and prospects of biochar in improving soil fertility, biochemical quality, and environmental applications

This review examines how biochar, a charcoal-like material made from organic waste, can improve soil health and clean up pollutants including microplastics. Biochar's ability to absorb and trap contaminants makes it a promising tool for reducing microplastic pollution in agricultural soil. The findings suggest biochar could help limit the amount of microplastics that enter the food chain through crops grown in contaminated soil.

2023 Frontiers in Environmental Science 127 citations
Article Tier 2

Applications of biochar in the remediation of soil microplastic pollution: A review

Researchers reviewed the use of biochar as a tool for remediating microplastic-contaminated soil. The study found that biochar application shows promise for addressing soil microplastic pollution by altering soil properties in ways that can reduce microplastic mobility and mitigate their negative effects on soil structure, plant growth, and biogeochemical cycling.

2025 Soil Science Society of America Journal 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Biochar-based adsorption technologies for microplastic remediation in aquatic ecosystems

This review examines the use of biochar, a carbon-rich material made from organic waste, as a tool for removing microplastics from water. Biochar can effectively adsorb microplastic particles due to its porous structure and surface chemistry, and it can be produced cheaply from agricultural waste. The technology shows promise as an affordable and sustainable approach to reducing microplastic contamination in waterways, though challenges remain in scaling it up for real-world water treatment.

2025 AIP Advances 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Biochar mitigates microplastic‐induced destabilization of soil organic carbon via molecular recalcitrance and microbial process regulation

Biochar amendments to soil were shown to offset the destabilizing effects that microplastics have on soil aggregate structure. The finding suggests that biochar could be a practical soil amendment to counteract microplastic-driven soil degradation in contaminated agricultural lands.

2025 Functional Ecology 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Biochar alters chemical and microbial properties of microplastic-contaminated soil

Researchers found that biochar amendments improved chemical and microbial properties of microplastic-contaminated soil, with effects varying by biochar type and water conditions, suggesting biochar as a potential remediation tool for plastic-polluted agricultural soils.

2022 Environmental Research 108 citations
Article Tier 2

The individual transport, cotransport and immobilization with solar pyrolysis biochar of microplastics and plasticizer in sandy soil

Researchers tracked the individual transport, co-transport, and immobilization of microplastics in porous media, finding that plastic particle behavior differs significantly depending on surface charge and pore structure interactions. The results improve predictions of where microplastics migrate and accumulate in soils and aquifers.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Addressing the Microplastic Dilemma in Soil and Sediment with Focus on Biochar-Based Remediation Techniques: Review

This review examines how biochar, a carbon-rich material made from organic waste, can be used to remediate microplastic-contaminated soils and sediments. Researchers found that biochar can adsorb microplastics and reduce their mobility, while also improving overall soil health and microbial activity. The study highlights biochar-based approaches as a cost-effective and environmentally friendly strategy for addressing microplastic pollution in terrestrial environments.

2023 Soil Systems 16 citations
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

Investigating the Adsorption Effect of Biochar on Microplastic Pollutants in Soil

This study reviews how biochar can adsorb and remove microplastics from contaminated soil through physical and chemical mechanisms. Researchers found that biochar's high surface area and functional groups are key factors in its microplastic adsorption capacity, and that acidic soil conditions improve removal efficiency. The findings suggest biochar application could be a practical approach for addressing microplastic pollution in agricultural soils.

2025 Science and Technology of Engineering Chemistry and Environmental Protection 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Removal of microplastics from agricultural runoff using biochar: a column feasibility study

Researchers tested whether biochar columns could filter microplastics from agricultural runoff water in the Mississippi Delta region. They found that biochar effectively captured microplastics from farm runoff, with removal efficiency depending on flow rate and column design. The study demonstrates a low-cost, nature-based approach that farmers could potentially use to reduce microplastic pollution flowing from agricultural fields into nearby waterways.

2024 Frontiers in Environmental Science 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Exploring the potential of biochar for the remediation of microbial communities and element cycling in microplastic-contaminated soil

Scientists found that adding biochar (a charcoal-like material made from plant waste) to soil contaminated with microplastics helped restore healthy microbial communities and nutrient cycling. The biochar reversed negative effects that microplastics had on soil chemistry, including nitrogen and phosphorus availability. This suggests biochar could be a practical tool for repairing farmland damaged by microplastic pollution.

2024 Chemosphere 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Biochar applications in microplastic and nanoplastic removal: mechanisms and integrated approaches

This review explores how biochar, a charcoal-like material made from organic waste, can be used to filter microplastics and nanoplastics out of water. Researchers found that biochar works through several mechanisms and becomes even more effective when combined with other water treatment technologies. The study suggests biochar-based approaches could be a practical, low-cost strategy for tackling plastic pollution in water systems.

2024 Environmental Science Water Research & Technology 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Sludge-derived biochar: Physicochemical characteristics for environmental remediation

This review examines how sewage sludge can be converted into biochar, a carbon-rich material useful for cleaning up environmental contaminants including microplastics and heavy metals from water and soil. The process turns a waste product into an effective pollution filter while reducing the volume of sludge that needs disposal. This approach is relevant to microplastics research because biochar could help remove plastic particles from contaminated water and agricultural land.

2023 Applied Physics Reviews 38 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorptive behavior of micro(nano)plastics through biochar: Co-existence, consequences, and challenges in contaminated ecosystems

This review examines how biochar can adsorb micro- and nanoplastics with over 90% removal efficiency in aqueous systems, while also discussing their combined effects on soil properties, microbial communities, and plant growth.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 138 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined effect of biochar and soil moisture on soil chemical properties and microbial community composition in microplastic‐contaminated agricultural soil

Biochar was applied to microplastic-contaminated agricultural soil under different moisture conditions, with results showing that biochar improved soil chemical properties and shifted microbial communities in ways that partially offset microplastic-induced degradation. The study suggests biochar as a practical soil amendment to mitigate microplastic impacts in farming systems.

2022 Soil Use and Management 49 citations
Article Tier 2

Addition of biochar as thin preamble layer into sand filtration columns could improve the microplastics removal from water

Researchers found that adding a thin biochar layer to sand filtration columns greatly improved microplastic removal from water, with biochar produced at higher pyrolysis temperatures performing better due to stronger electrostatic interactions with plastic particles.

2022 Water Research 89 citations