Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Plastic drift : Mapping the course of microplastic transport in turbulent riverine flows.

Researchers conducted laboratory experiments tracking the 3D trajectories of 24 negatively buoyant microplastic particles spanning a range of sizes, shapes, and densities in turbulent open channel flow, generating 720 trajectories to evaluate how well conventional sediment transport models apply to microplastics. Results revealed that the inherent variability in microplastic physical properties challenges direct application of sediment transport concepts to microplastic fate prediction in rivers.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

A Lagrangian Model for Microplastics Transport in Rivers

Researchers developed a Lagrangian computational model to simulate how microplastics are transported through river systems, accounting for particle buoyancy, turbulence, and settling behavior. The model provides a tool for predicting microplastic fate and accumulation in freshwater environments.

2024 Jornadas de jóvenes investigadores del I3A
Article Tier 2

Computational Analysis of Microplastics Hydrodynamics in Laboratory Experiment

Researchers conducted computational simulations of microplastic hydrodynamics in an open channel using OpenFOAM with turbulent flow modelling, validating the simulation against laboratory experimental results and examining how particle properties influence settling behaviour.

2024 Repository of the University of Rijeka Library
Article Tier 2

Plastic drift : Mapping the course of microplastic transport in turbulent riverine flows.

Researchers investigated the transport dynamics of 24 negatively buoyant microplastic particles across a spectrum of sizes, shapes, and densities using a 3D particle tracking system in turbulent open channel flow, generating 720 trajectories. They found that particle shape was the dominant determinant of transport behavior, with fibers tending to remain near the water surface at lower forward velocities while spheres stayed closer to the bed with higher forward velocities.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Modeling the settling and resuspension of microplastics in rivers: Effect of particle properties and flow conditions

Researchers developed a mathematical model to simulate how microplastics of different shapes settle and resuspend in rivers, moving beyond the common assumption that all particles are spherical. They found that turbulence has a complex effect, sometimes keeping particles suspended longer and sometimes accelerating their settling, depending on flow conditions. The model reveals that particle shape significantly influences where microplastics end up in river systems.

2024 Water Research 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Dispersal and transport of microplastic particles under different flow conditions in riverine ecosystem

Researchers developed a particle-tracking model combined with hydrodynamic simulation to study how microplastics travel through river systems under different water flow conditions. They found that flow speed, turbulence, and river channel features significantly influence where microplastics accumulate and how far they travel. The study provides a useful tool for predicting microplastic transport patterns and identifying pollution hotspots in river ecosystems.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 80 citations
Article Tier 2

Computational Analysis of Microplastics Hydrodynamics

Researchers developed a numerical model in Python and OpenFOAM to simulate microplastic particle dynamics in laminar open-channel flow, finding that particles smaller than 0.5 mm are unlikely to settle regardless of sphericity index, with results validated on a supercomputer.

2024 Repository of the University of Rijeka Library
Article Tier 2

Factors influencing the vertical distribution and transport of plastics in riverine environments: Theoretical background and implications for improved field study design.

This review examines the physical and hydrodynamic factors governing the vertical distribution and transport of plastics in riverine environments, synthesizing theoretical background on settling velocity, turbulence, and buoyancy to provide recommendations for improved field study design.

2025 Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987)
Article Tier 2

Modeling the trajectories of floating and non-floating microplastic particles in the water column

Researchers modeled the trajectories of both floating and non-floating microplastic particles in freshwater and marine water columns, accounting for turbulence-induced mixing, buoyancy differences, and flow characteristics that determine vertical and horizontal distribution. The study highlights that while low-density polymers like polyethylene and polypropylene are expected to concentrate at the surface, turbulent mixing drives significant depth distribution across aquatic environments.

2024 E3S Web of Conferences
Article Tier 2

Entrainment and vertical mixing of aquatic microplastics in turbulent flow: The coupled role of particle size and density

Researchers conducted laboratory flume experiments to study how turbulence affects the vertical mixing and entrainment of microplastic particles of different sizes and densities. Both particle size and polymer density significantly influenced mixing behavior, with smaller and denser particles more responsive to turbulent structures, informing models of microplastic transport in rivers and coastal waters.

2022 Marine Pollution Bulletin 50 citations
Article Tier 2

Coupled CFD-DEM modelling to assess settlement velocity and drag coefficient of microplastics

Researchers used computational fluid dynamics coupled with particle simulations to model how the size, shape, and density of microplastics affect their settling velocity and drag in water. Accurate physical models of microplastic behavior are essential for predicting where particles accumulate in rivers, lakes, and the ocean.

2020 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Modelling forces on buoyant macro plastics and their cross-sectional distribution in rivers: Simplified modelling of buoyant macro plastics according to cornerstones in behavior and particle response times in a range of riverine environments to set-up efficient monitoring campaigns and help select locations for efficient plastic removal.

Researchers modeled the forces acting on buoyant plastic debris in rivers to better predict how macroplastics are distributed across river cross-sections, which is important for designing efficient plastic monitoring and collection systems. Understanding plastic transport in rivers is key to tracking how land-based plastics reach the ocean.

2019 Research Repository (Delft University of Technology)
Article Tier 2

Modeling impacts of river hydrodynamics on fate and transport of microplastics in riverine environments

Researchers built a computer model to simulate how microplastics travel and transform in river systems, accounting for particle aggregation and breakage driven by water flow. They found that microplastics clump together significantly in the early stages after entering a river, which changes the size distribution of particles flowing downstream. The study suggests that river conditions play a major role in determining what size and form of microplastics eventually reach the ocean.

2023 Marine Pollution Bulletin 26 citations
Article Tier 2

On the vertical structure of non-buoyant plastics in turbulent transport

Researchers investigated how non-floating plastic debris moves through river-like flows and found that plastics settle in unique, complex patterns due to their irregular shapes. In low-turbulence conditions, interactions between the plastic particles and the riverbed enhanced mixing beyond what standard sediment transport models would predict. The study proposes a new equation for describing how plastics are distributed vertically in flowing water.

2024 Water Research 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Distribution of Plastics of Various Sizes and Densities in the Global Ocean From a 3D Eulerian Model

Using a three-dimensional Eulerian transport model, researchers simulated global ocean distribution of microplastics across different sizes and densities, finding that particle buoyancy and size strongly govern vertical distribution and that significant MP fractions sink to deeper ocean layers.

2025 Journal of Geophysical Research Oceans 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Numerical Study of Microplastic Dispersal in Simulated Coastal Waters Using CFD Approach

Researchers used CFD numerical simulations to model microplastic dispersal in simulated coastal waters, investigating how particle type, size, shape, flow velocity, and temperature affect the transport and distribution patterns of PET, PU, and polypropylene microplastics.

2021 Water 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Settling velocity of microplastics in turbulent open-channel flow

Researchers studied how microplastic particles settle in turbulent river-like flow conditions compared to still water and developed a new formula to predict their behavior. They found that turbulence altered settling velocities by as much as 26% depending on particle properties, with larger, heavier particles being less influenced by water turbulence. The findings are important for building better models of how microplastics are transported and distributed in rivers and other flowing waterways.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Study of the influence of fluvial dynamics on the distribution and transport of microplastics.

Researchers studied how fluvial dynamics including flow velocity, turbulence, and river geomorphology influence the distribution and transport of microplastics in river systems. River hydrodynamics were found to be major determinants of where microplastics accumulate and how far they travel, with implications for predicting contamination patterns in river catchments.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

On some physical and dynamical properties of microplastic particles in marine environment

This study examined the physical and dynamical properties of microplastic particles in marine environments, using modeling to predict how particle shape, density, and size govern transport, dispersion, and accumulation patterns.

2016 Marine Pollution Bulletin 629 citations
Article Tier 2

Advancements in numerical simulation of microplastics transport in open waters: Model enhancements and sensitivity analyses of boundary conditions and settling velocities

Researchers updated a three-dimensional particle tracking model for simulating microplastic transport in marine and riverine environments, adding free-slip boundary conditions, settling and resuspension mechanics, and turbulent diffusion, then validated the model against field data from the Ottawa River and Saguenay Fjord.

2026 The Science of The Total Environment
Article Tier 2

Study of the influence of fluvial dynamics on the distribution and transport of microplastics.

Researchers studied how fluvial dynamics, including water flow, turbulence, and river morphology, influence microplastic distribution and transport in a river system. The study found that hydrological conditions strongly control where microplastics deposit and how they move through the watershed.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Impact of the Reynolds Numbers on the Velocity of Floating Microplastics in Open Channels

Researchers experimentally tracked the motion of nearly spherical polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene microplastics in open channel flow using video analysis, establishing quantitative relationships among Reynolds number, MP density, and floating velocity to better predict horizontal transport behavior.

2025 Water
Article Tier 2

Coupling fragmentation to a size-selective sedimentation model can quantify the long-term fate of buoyant plastics in the ocean

A size-selective sedimentation model was coupled with fragmentation dynamics to simulate how large plastic items break down and settle in aquatic environments over time. The coupled model advances predictions of microplastic size distributions and spatial accumulation patterns in rivers and oceans.

2025 Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A Mathematical Physical and Engineering Sciences 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Investigating Microplastic Resuspension in Environmental flows: Experimental and Numerical Approaches

Researchers used combined experimental and numerical approaches to investigate the resuspension of microplastics from sediment beds in riverine flows, finding that turbulence intensity during high-flow events plays a key role in detaching MP particles embedded in multi-density granular sediment beds.

2025