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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to UV aging induces colloidal-like behavior in microplastics, mediating contaminant fluxes across interfaces
ClearThe influence of oxidation and hydrophobic coupling on the transport behavior of polyethylene microplastics: The synergistic effect of ultraviolet aging and surfactants
Researchers investigated how ultraviolet aging and surfactant attachment interact to influence the transport behavior of polyethylene microplastics, finding that UV oxidation increases oxygen-containing surface groups and reduces hydrophobicity, which in turn alters surfactant adsorption and modifies particle mobility in environmental systems. The study addresses a gap in understanding the coupled effects of oxidative aging and surface chemistry on microplastic transport.
Change in adsorption behavior of aquatic humic substances on microplastic through biotic and abiotic aging processes
Researchers found that both UV irradiation and microbial aging of polyethylene microplastics significantly altered their surface chemistry, changing how aquatic humic substances adsorb onto the plastic surface and highlighting the importance of weathering state in assessing microplastic-contaminant interactions.
Progress on the photo aging mechanism of microplastics and related impact factors in water environment
This review examined the photo-aging mechanisms of microplastics in aquatic environments, finding that solar UV radiation drives oxidation reactions that alter surface chemistry, fragment particles further, and enhance their capacity to adsorb and release co-occurring pollutants.
Aging characteristics of polylatic acid microplastics and their adsorption on hydrophilic organic pollutants: mechanistic investigations and theoretical calculations
Researchers characterized how polylactic acid microplastics undergo UV and thermal aging in aquatic environments, finding that aging altered surface chemistry, increased hydrophilicity, and enhanced adsorption of heavy metal pollutants—raising concerns about aged biodegradable plastics as carriers of co-contaminants.
Multi-mechanistic adsorption of pharmaceuticals and personal care products on oxidized microplastics: Oxidation processes, mechanisms, and environmental implications
Researchers reviewed how weathering and oxidation change microplastic surfaces, making them better at absorbing pharmaceuticals and personal care product chemicals from water. The modified surfaces attract these contaminants through multiple chemical forces, meaning aged microplastics in the environment act as enhanced carriers for drug and cosmetic pollutants.
Non-Negligible Effects of UV Irradiation on Transformation and Environmental Risks of Microplastics in the Water Environment
This review examines how UV irradiation drives photoaging of microplastics in aquatic environments, altering their surface chemistry, mechanical properties, and adsorption capacity for co-pollutants, and thereby amplifying their ecotoxicological risks beyond those of virgin plastic particles.
Aging Process of Microplastics in the Environment
This review examines how natural environmental processes — UV radiation, physical abrasion, chemical reactions, and biodegradation — alter the surface, shape, and chemistry of microplastics over time, and how these changes affect their ability to absorb and transport other pollutants. Understanding microplastic aging is critical because weathered particles behave differently than fresh plastic, often becoming more hazardous as pollutant carriers in ecosystems.
Effects of Weathering on Microplastic Dispersibility and Pollutant Uptake Capacity
This study examined how environmental weathering changes the surface properties of microplastics and their ability to absorb co-pollutants, finding that weathered MPs bind more contaminants than pristine particles due to surface oxidation and cracking. The results emphasize that the environmental fate and toxicity of microplastics change dynamically as they age in the environment.
Transport of degradable/nondegradable and aged microplastics in porous media: Effects of physicochemical factors
Researchers compared the transport of degradable (PLA) and nondegradable (PVC) microplastics through porous media, finding that degradable microplastics were more easily retained due to greater surface roughness and hydrophilicity, while aging from UV exposure further increased retention of both types.
Aging mechanism of microplastics with UV irradiation and its effects on the adsorption of heavy metals
Researchers aged polystyrene microplastics using UV irradiation under three conditions (air, pure water, seawater) and found that aging changed surface chemistry and increased the microplastics' capacity to adsorb heavy metals, with seawater aging producing the most pronounced surface oxidation.
Laboratory simulation of microplastics weathering and its adsorption behaviors in an aqueous environment: A systematic review
UV photo-oxidation and physical abrasion are the most practical laboratory methods for simulating microplastic weathering; aging increases surface area and oxygen-containing functional groups, altering pollutant adsorption behavior and potentially increasing environmental risks.
UVA-induced weathering of microplastics in seawater: surface property transformations and kinetics
Researchers studied how UVA radiation weathers microplastics in seawater, examining changes to surface properties and degradation rates. The study developed a model integrating an aging index with degradation kinetics, finding that UV exposure significantly transforms microplastic surface characteristics, which affects their behavior and potential ecological impact in marine environments.
Mechanistic interpretation of the sorption of terbuthylazine pesticide onto aged microplastics
Researchers investigated how accelerated weathering — using UV irradiation, hydrogen peroxide, and ultrasonic treatment — alters the surface properties of polyethylene microplastics and affects their sorption of the herbicide terbuthylazine. Aged polyethylene particles showed measurably different sorption kinetics and capacities compared to pristine particles, providing mechanistic insight into how environmental aging changes microplastic interactions with organic pollutants like pesticides.
Surface characteristics and adsorption properties of polypropylene microplastics by ultraviolet irradiation and natural aging
This study examined how aging and UV light change the surface properties of polypropylene microplastics and their ability to absorb other pollutants. UV-aged microplastics absorbed significantly more of a common dye pollutant, while naturally aged particles absorbed less due to biological film buildup. Understanding how microplastics change over time in the environment matters because aged particles may carry different levels of harmful chemicals than fresh ones.
Simulated experimental investigation of microplastic weathering in marine environment
Researchers simulated microplastic weathering under marine conditions, finding that exposure to UV light, saltwater, and mechanical abrasion progressively degraded plastic surfaces, increased surface roughness, and enhanced the adsorption capacity of contaminants onto microplastic particles.
Sorption behavior and mechanism of hydrophilic organic chemicals to virgin and aged microplastics in freshwater and seawater
UV-accelerated aging of polystyrene and PVC microplastics increased surface oxidation and introduced microcracks, and aged MPs showed significantly increased adsorption of the hydrophilic antibiotic ciprofloxacin compared to virgin MPs. The findings demonstrate that even hydrophilic organic chemicals can accumulate on aged microplastics, expanding the range of compounds that microplastics may carry and deliver to organisms.
Ageing Affects the Mechanical Interactionbetween Microplastics and Lipid Bilayers
Researchers found that as polyethylene microplastics age and become more hydrophilic, they adhere more strongly to lipid bilayers and cause greater membrane stretching, suggesting that weathered microplastics in the environment may pose higher biological risks than fresh particles.
The fate, impacts and potential risks of photoaging process of the microplastics in the aqueous environment
This review examines how ultraviolet light from sunlight causes microplastics in water to age and change their physical and chemical properties, including surface texture, chemical structure, and water-repelling ability. Researchers found that photoaged microplastics become better at carrying other pollutants and may pose greater environmental risks than fresh plastics. The study highlights that aged microplastics can also increase biological toxicity and human exposure risks compared to their original form.
Can aged microplastics be transport vectors for organic micropollutants? – Sorption and phytotoxicity tests
This study examined whether aged microplastics can act as transport carriers for organic micropollutants in the environment. Researchers found that aging processes like UV weathering altered the surface properties of microplastics, affecting their ability to sorb pollutants and influence phytotoxicity in plants.
Sulfide- and UV-induced aging differentially affect contaminant-binding properties of microplastics derived from commercial plastic products
Researchers found that sulfide- and UV-induced aging of microplastics differentially alter their ability to bind environmental contaminants, with sulfide treatment particularly enhancing chromium adsorption through thiol group formation and both processes increasing PET adsorption capacity through particle flattening.
Aging of microplastics increases their adsorption affinity towards organic contaminants
Researchers found that microplastics that have been weathered by sunlight and environmental exposure absorb significantly more chemical pollutants than fresh microplastics, with up to a 4.7-fold increase in adsorption. Ultraviolet exposure changes the surface chemistry of the plastics, making them stickier for contaminants. This matters because most microplastics in nature are weathered, meaning they may be carrying more toxic chemicals into the food chain than laboratory studies using new plastics would suggest.
The effect of UV exposure on conventional and degradable microplastics adsorption for Pb (II) in sediment
Researchers studied how UV aging affects the ability of conventional polyethylene and degradable polylactic acid microplastics to adsorb lead ions from aquatic sediment. They found that UV aging increased the surface area and oxygen content of both plastic types, enhancing their capacity to adsorb heavy metals. The study suggests that weathered microplastics in the environment may be more effective carriers of heavy metal contamination than pristine particles.
Insights into the characteristics, adsorption and desorption behaviors of microplastics aged with or without fulvic acid
Researchers investigated how fulvic acid, a key component of dissolved organic matter, influences the aging, adsorption, and desorption behavior of microplastics under UV radiation, finding that water environmental factors significantly alter the surface properties and contaminant-binding capacity of aged microplastics.
Induced aging, structural change, and adsorption behavior modifications of microplastics by microalgae
Researchers found that microalgal biofouling caused more significant aging and surface degradation of microplastics compared to river microbial biofouling over a 30-day period. The study suggests that algae-induced aging substantially enhances the ability of polyethylene and PVC microplastics to adsorb organic pollutants like bisphenol analogues, increasing their potential to transport contaminants in the environment.