Papers

61,005 results
|
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
Systematic Review Tier 1

The potential of microplastics acting as vector for triclosan in aquatic environments

This systematic review found that microplastics can act as vectors for triclosan (an antibacterial agent) in aquatic environments, transporting it across trophic levels through hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, and electrostatic forces. The co-occurrence of microplastics and triclosan amplifies their combined toxicity to aquatic organisms beyond their individual effects.

2025 Aquatic Toxicology 4 citations
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

Adsorption behavior of triclosan on polystyrene nanoplastics: The roles of particle size, surface functionalization, and environmental factors

Researchers examined how triclosan, an antimicrobial compound common in personal care products, adsorbs onto polystyrene nanoplastics of different sizes and surface chemistries, finding that smaller particles and functionalized surfaces (with carboxyl or amine groups) bind more triclosan, with pH and salinity further modulating uptake — suggesting nanoplastics can serve as mobile carriers for this contaminant.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 30 citations
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

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

Insights into the adsorption of ibuprofen onto polyethylene microplastics using molecular dynamic simulation

Researchers used molecular dynamics simulations combined with laboratory experiments to study how ibuprofen adsorbs onto polyethylene microplastics in water. The study found that van der Waals forces dominate the interaction, with microplastics achieving an adsorption capacity of 0.41 mg/g for ibuprofen, suggesting that microplastics can act as carriers for pharmaceutical pollutants in aquatic environments.

2025 Journal of Environmental Management 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption mechanism of cefradine on three microplastics: A combined molecular dynamics simulation and density functional theory calculation study

Using computer simulations, researchers studied how the antibiotic cefradine attaches to three common types of microplastics (polyamide, polyethylene, and polypropylene). Hydrogen bonding was the main force driving antibiotic attachment to polyamide, while weaker forces dominated for the other plastics. This helps explain how microplastics can carry antibiotics through water environments, potentially contributing to antibiotic resistance that threatens human health.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 16 citations
Article Tier 2

An Atomic‐Level Perspective on the interactions between Organic Pollutants and PET particles: A Comprehensive Computational Investigation

Using advanced computational methods, researchers studied how organic pollutants interact with PET microplastic particles at the atomic level. The study found that pollutants bind to PET surfaces mainly through weak intermolecular forces, and that the specific chemical structure of both the pollutant and the plastic surface determines how strongly they attach.

2024 ChemPhysChem 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of tetracyclines onto polyethylene microplastics: A combined study of experiment and molecular dynamics simulation

The adsorption of three tetracycline antibiotics (TC, CTC, and OTC) onto polyethylene microplastics was studied in aqueous solution through a combination of batch experiments and computational modeling. Results showed that hydrophobic interactions and surface properties of PE microplastics drive tetracycline adsorption, contributing to antibiotic accumulation on environmental plastic debris.

2020 Chemosphere 201 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption and Desorption of Triclosan on Biodegradable Polyhydroxybutyrate Microplastics

This study examined how the widely used antimicrobial chemical triclosan adsorbs onto and desorbs from biodegradable polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) microplastics. Even biodegradable plastics can act as vectors for chemical pollutants, accumulating triclosan from water and potentially releasing it into organisms that ingest the particles.

2020 Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 50 citations
Article Tier 2

Surface functional group dependent enthalpic and entropic contributions to molecular adsorption on colloidal microplastics

This chemistry study measured how different organic molecules (charged and neutral) stick to the surface of various microplastic particles in water, finding that the plastic's surface chemistry strongly influences the strength and nature of these interactions. The work reveals that both electrostatic attraction and water structure at the plastic surface play a role in determining what contaminants microplastics can carry. This matters because microplastics act as "carriers" for other pollutants, and understanding the binding chemistry helps predict which toxins hitchhike with plastics into ecosystems and organisms.

2025 Soft Matter 1 citations
Article Tier 2

The interaction mechanism of polystyrene microplastics with pharmaceuticals and personal care products

Computational chemistry methods including force field and density functional theory calculations were used to characterize how polystyrene microplastics interact with co-occurring pharmaceuticals and other organic water pollutants, revealing hydrophobic and pi-pi stacking interactions as dominant adsorption mechanisms. The modeling provides mechanistic insight into microplastics' role as vectors for organic contaminant transport in aquatic environments.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 47 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

Adsorption of drugs on nanoplastics: Modeling challenges and experimental proof

Researchers investigated the adsorption of the antibiotic tetracycline onto four nanoplastic types — polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, and nylon 6,6 — using computational chemical modeling combined with experimental validation. The study reveals that modeling nanoplastic-drug interactions requires careful conformation sampling and highlights the potential for these aggregates to alter both drug bioavailability and microplastic toxicity.

2024 1 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

The Sword of Damocles: Microplastics and the molecular dynamics of sulfamonomethoxine revealed

Researchers studied how three types of microplastics interact with the antibiotic sulfamonomethoxine in water using molecular dynamics simulations and laboratory experiments. They found that polyamide had the strongest adsorption capacity while polyethylene terephthalate formed the most stable bonds with the antibiotic. The findings help explain how different microplastics can act as carriers for pharmaceutical pollutants in aquatic environments.

2024 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of the antimicrobial triclosan to microplastics impacts biofilm and planktonic microbial communities in freshwater

Researchers tested how triclosan—an antimicrobial compound—adsorbs to microplastics and what effect this has on microbial biofilm communities in freshwater. Triclosan-loaded microplastics shifted microbial community composition and increased abundance of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in biofilms, demonstrating that microplastics acting as vectors for antimicrobials can restructure freshwater microbial ecosystems.

2025 The Science of The Total Environment
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior and interaction mechanism of microplastics with typical hydrophilic pharmaceuticals and personal care products

This study examined how different types of microplastics adsorb hydrophilic pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in aquatic environments, finding that polymer type and surface properties governed the interaction mechanisms. The results indicate that microplastics can act as vectors for these emerging contaminants.

2023 Environmental Research 27 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of triclosan on microplastics and their combined acute toxicity to D. magna

Researchers studied how the antibacterial chemical triclosan attaches to different types of microplastics in water and tested their combined toxicity on water fleas. They found that triclosan readily adsorbed onto polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene microplastics, with the process influenced by water chemistry factors like pH and salt content. When water fleas were exposed to microplastics carrying triclosan, the combined toxicity was greater than from either contaminant alone.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Modelling of the adsorption of chlorinated phenols on polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate microplastic

This study modeled how chlorinated phenols — toxic water pollutants — stick to polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics sourced from personal care products. The findings suggest microplastics can act as carriers for harmful chemicals in aquatic environments, potentially concentrating toxins and delivering them to organisms that ingest the particles.

2019 Journal of the Serbian Chemical Society 23 citations
Article Tier 2

The role of microplastics as vectors of antibiotic contaminants via a molecular simulation approach

Researchers used computer simulations to study how microplastics interact with common antibiotics at the molecular level. They found that polystyrene microplastics had a stronger ability to adsorb antibiotics than polypropylene, and that aging of the plastic surfaces enhanced adsorption capacity. The study provides evidence that microplastics can serve as carriers for antibiotic pollutants in the environment, potentially spreading contamination further.

2025 Scientific Reports 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as vectors of triclosan: relevance of the biofilm on Daphnia magna survival

Researchers evaluated polyethylene microplastics as vectors of triclosan (TCS) in Daphnia magna survival experiments, examining how biofilm formation on microplastic surfaces — simulating conditions downstream of wastewater treatment plants — modifies the adsorption and desorption of triclosan and consequently its toxicity to the zooplankton.

2022 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Biofilm formation strongly influences the vector transport of triclosan-loaded polyethylene microplastics

Researchers found that biofilm formation on polyethylene microplastics strongly influences their role as vectors for triclosan transport, with biofouled microplastics showing altered pollutant sorption capacity and different toxicity effects on Daphnia magna.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 32 citations