Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Analyzing the Application and Ecological Value of Green Roofs in Urban Environmental Art Design

This study analyzes the ecological and aesthetic functions of green roofs in urban environmental art design, examining their roles in pollutant adsorption, urban heat island mitigation, and rooftop agriculture, and discussing cost and technical barriers to wider adoption.

2025 MATEC Web of Conferences
Article Tier 2

Microplastic retention in green walls for nature-based and decentralized greywater treatment

A pilot-scale living green wall — a vertical plant system — was used to treat household greywater and was shown to retain microplastics larger than 50 µm with good efficiency while also reducing chemical oxygen demand by around 80%. Green walls represent a nature-based decentralized treatment option that could help keep microplastics out of urban waterways, particularly in areas where centralized wastewater infrastructure is limited.

2024 Environmental Pollution 3 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Evaluating the Effectiveness of Bioretention Cells for Urban Stormwater Management: A Systematic Review

This systematic review found that bioretention cells effectively reduce stormwater runoff volume and peak flow rates while removing pollutants including heavy metals, nutrients, and suspended solids. Performance varies significantly by region and design parameters, with soil media composition and vegetation type being the most influential factors.

2023 Water 52 citations
Article Tier 2

Road Verge Vegetation and the Capture of Particulate Matter Air Pollution

Researchers evaluated the ability of road verge shrub and herbaceous vegetation to capture particulate matter air pollution at four locations in Southampton, UK, under varying traffic conditions. Analysis of leaf samples for captured particle mass, size, and elemental composition showed that plant species with specific leaf morphologies can effectively immobilise particulate matter, including plastic-derived particles.

2020 Environments 15 citations
Article Tier 2

The use of biochar made from biomass and biosolids as a substrate for green infrastructure: A review

This review examined the use of biochar produced from biomass and biosolids as a substrate for green infrastructure such as green roofs and walls, highlighting its benefits for plant growth, pollutant absorption, carbon sequestration, and stormwater management.

2023 Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy 43 citations
Article Tier 2

Decontamination of pollutants present in water, air, and soil through phytoremediation: a critical review

This critical review examines phytoremediation — the use of plants to remove contaminants from soil, water, and air — covering mechanisms such as phytoextraction, phytodegradation, and rhizofiltration, and assessing their effectiveness for heavy metals, organic pollutants, and microplastics.

2025 International Journal of Phytoremediation
Article Tier 2

Evaluating the role of urban green infrastructure in combating traffic-related microplastic pollution

Researchers tested whether a hedge of Thuja trees along a city street in Lithuania could reduce airborne microplastic pollution from traffic. They found that microplastic levels were significantly lower behind the hedge compared to areas without the green barrier, with the hedge reducing concentrations by roughly half at close range. The study suggests that urban green infrastructure like hedges could serve as a practical, low-cost tool for filtering traffic-related microplastics from the air.

2025 The Science of The Total Environment 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Small-scale botanical in enhancing indoor air quality: A bibliometric analysis (2011-2020) and short review

This bibliometric review analyzed a decade of research on using indoor plants to improve indoor air quality, finding a sharp increase in publications from 2011 to 2020 and identifying volatile organic compound removal as the dominant research theme. The review noted that most studies use controlled lab conditions that may not reflect real-world plant effectiveness in buildings.

2022 Progress in Energy and Environment 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Tree Species as Biomonitors of Air Pollution around a Scrap Metal Recycling Factory in Southwest Nigeria: Implications for Greenbelt Development

Researchers evaluated six tree species near a scrap metal recycling factory in Nigeria for their ability to tolerate and absorb air pollution. They ranked the species by their air pollution tolerance index and anticipated performance, identifying which trees would be most effective for creating protective greenbelts. The study contributes to understanding how vegetation can help mitigate airborne pollution in industrialized areas where particulate contamination, including microplastics, is a concern.

2024 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Preliminary Research on Moss-Based Biocomposites as an Alternative Substrate in Moss Walls

This study examined the use of moss-based biocomposites as a sustainable substrate for outdoor air purification 'moss filter' installations, replacing petroleum-based filter materials with a natural alternative. The research aims to ensure that green infrastructure genuinely avoids unsustainable components, rather than inadvertently incorporating plastic-based elements.

2023 Sustainability 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Assessing the Influences of Leaf Functional Traits on Plant Performances Under Dust Deposition and Microplastic Retention

This study assessed airborne microplastic accumulation on the leaves of ten urban plant species in an Indian city, finding fragments and films were most abundant, and that leaf functional traits (surface texture, wax content) significantly influenced both microplastic retention and the plants' biochemical stress responses.

2025 Atmosphere 2 citations
Article Tier 2

The Occurrence and Removal of Microplastics from Stormwater Using Green Infrastructure

This review examines microplastic occurrence in urban stormwater and the potential of green infrastructure — particularly bioretention systems and constructed wetlands — to capture and remove plastic particles before they reach surface water bodies.

2025 Water 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics removal from stormwater runoff by bioretention cells: A review

This review examines the potential of bioretention cells, a type of green infrastructure, to remove microplastics from stormwater runoff. Researchers analyzed how these systems filter microplastics through soil media and vegetation and identified the key design parameters that affect removal efficiency. The study suggests that bioretention cells offer a promising nature-based solution for reducing microplastic loads entering waterways from urban areas.

2024 Journal of Environmental Sciences 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Evaluating the retention of airborne microplastics on plant leaf: Influence of leaf morphology

Researchers tested how well different plant species capture airborne microplastics on their leaves and found that plants with textured surfaces like tiny hairs (trichomes) or divided leaflets trapped the most particles. PET fibers were the most common type of airborne microplastic captured. The study suggests that indoor and outdoor plants could help reduce the airborne microplastics that people breathe in, offering a simple, natural strategy to lower human exposure.

2024 Environmental Pollution 22 citations
Article Tier 2

The importance of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria to increase air pollution tolerance index (APTI) in the plants of green belt to control dust hazards

Researchers found that inoculating plants with growth-promoting rhizobacteria significantly increased their Air Pollution Tolerance Index, enhancing the ability of green belt vegetation to withstand and filter dust and air pollutants.

2023 Frontiers in Plant Science 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Terrestrial plants as a potential temporary sink of atmospheric microplastics during transport

Plant leaves in two urban regions were found to trap atmospheric microplastics, with plastics making up 28% of the particles adhered to leaf surfaces. Extrapolated globally, leaves in the top 11 greenest countries could hold an estimated 130 billion microplastic pieces, making plants a temporary but significant atmospheric sink for microplastic pollution.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 193 citations
Review Tier 2

Beneficial Use Impairments, Degradation of Aesthetics, and Human Health: A Review

This review systematically assessed the relationship between environmental aesthetics (green and blue spaces) and human health, finding only 19 qualifying studies in the literature and none that adequately evaluated how remediation or restoration efforts impact community health outcomes. The authors identified a critical gap between the well-supported link connecting greenspace proximity to health benefits and the absence of research on quality improvements.

2022 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 6 citations
Meta Analysis Tier 1

Urban trees as natural interceptors for aerial microplastics: Mechanisms, influencing factors, and selection of tree types for mitigation

This meta-analysis found that urban trees intercept aerial microplastics through surface adhesion and chemical bonding, with fiber-shaped polypropylene particles under 1 mm most commonly captured on leaves. Indigenous evergreen species emerged as the most effective tree type for microplastic mitigation, and rainfall facilitates continuous interception cycles by washing particles from leaf surfaces.

2025 The Science of The Total Environment 2 citations
Article Tier 2

The Use of Mosses in Biomonitoring of Air Pollution in the Terrestrial Environment: A Review

This paper is not about microplastics; it reviews the use of mosses as biomonitors for air pollution by metals and organic compounds.

2023 Ochrona Srodowiska i Zasobów Naturalnych - Environmental Protection and Natural Resources 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Green roofs act as the first barrier to intercept microplastics from urban atmosphere

Lab experiments and field simulations in Shanghai found that modular green roofs intercept over 97.5% of deposited microplastics from wet atmospheric deposition, functioning as effective first-barrier filters that could meaningfully reduce urban microplastic loading to soils and waterways.

2025 Communications Earth & Environment 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Green barriers to plastic transport in rivers: an indoor study

Indoor flume experiments demonstrated that riparian vegetation and green infrastructure along riverbanks can trap floating and suspended plastic debris, suggesting that natural and planted green barriers could help reduce plastic transport to the ocean.

2024
Article Tier 2

Blue–Green Infrastructure Effectiveness for Urban Stormwater Management: A Multi-Scale Residential Case Study

Despite its title referencing urban stormwater management, this paper studies the effectiveness of blue-green infrastructure — such as rain gardens and permeable pavements — at managing stormwater runoff from residential areas under climate change conditions. While stormwater is a major carrier of microplastics to waterways, this study focuses on hydraulic performance rather than microplastic removal, and is only tangentially relevant to the topic.

2025 Land 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Mitigating airborne microplastics pollution from perspectives of precipitation and underlying surface types

Researchers collected airborne microplastics under and away from a Ficus tree in Chengdu, China, finding that tree canopy cover and meteorological conditions such as precipitation significantly reduce airborne microplastic concentrations, suggesting vegetation as a natural mitigation measure.

2023 Water Research 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Comparison of microplastic type, size, and composition in atmospheric and foliage samples in an urban scenario

Researchers compared microplastic contamination in outdoor air deposits and on plant leaf surfaces in an urban area and found that both sampling methods detected similar types and sizes of microplastic particles. Fibers were the most common shape found, and polyester and polyethylene were among the most frequently identified polymers. The study suggests that plant foliage could serve as a practical biomonitor for tracking airborne microplastic pollution in cities.

2024 Environmental Pollution 25 citations