Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Impact of CeO2 nanoparticles on the aggregation kinetics and stability of polystyrene nanoplastics: Importance of surface functionalization and solution chemistry

Researchers used time-resolved dynamic light scattering to investigate how cerium dioxide nanoparticles influence the aggregation and stability of differently surface-functionalized polystyrene nanoplastics across multiple water chemistries. Results showed that CeO2 nanoparticles promoted heteroaggregation with nanoplastics, with natural organic matter and ionic strength modulating aggregate formation and the environmental mobility of nanoplastics.

2020 Water Research 108 citations
Article Tier 2

The crucial role of a protein corona in determining the aggregation kinetics and colloidal stability of polystyrene nanoplastics

Time-resolved dynamic light scattering was used to study how protein coronas — protein layers that form on nanoplastics in biological or environmental fluids — control the aggregation kinetics and colloidal stability of polystyrene nanoplastics. Protein identity and concentration profoundly shifted nanoplastic behavior, with implications for how these particles move and persist in natural water systems.

2020 Water Research 129 citations
Article Tier 2

Mechanistic understanding of the aggregation kinetics of nanoplastics in marine environments: Comparing synthetic and natural water matrices

Researchers investigated aggregation kinetics of polystyrene nanoplastics in marine environments, finding that organic matter type and salt concentration strongly influenced particle stability, with nanoplastics in natural seawater aggregating differently than in synthetic matrices.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials Advances 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of electrolyte and natural organic matter characteristics on the aggregation and sedimentation of polystyrene nanoplastics

Researchers examined how dissolved organic matter from different water sources affects the aggregation and sedimentation of polystyrene nanoplastics under varied salt concentrations and temperatures, finding that biopolymers form a protective 'eco-corona' around particles that strongly inhibits long-term sedimentation, while temperature influences aggregation dynamics in complex ways.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Photoaging-induced variations in heteroaggregation of nanoplastics and suspended sediments in aquatic environments: A case study on nanopolystyrene

Researchers investigated how photoaging affects the aggregation behavior of polystyrene nanoplastics with suspended sediments in water. They found that 30 days of photoaging retarded aggregation in sodium chloride solutions due to steric hindrance from leached organic matter, but promoted aggregation in calcium chloride solutions through calcium bridging of newly formed oxygen-containing surface groups. The study provides mechanistic insights into how environmental weathering changes the transport and fate of nanoplastics in aquatic systems.

2024 Water Research 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Aggregation kinetics of microplastics in aquatic environment: Complex roles of electrolytes, pH, and natural organic matter

Researchers found that the aggregation behavior of polystyrene microplastics in water was strongly influenced by pH, ionic strength, and the presence of natural organic matter, with divalent cations like calcium and magnesium promoting aggregation. Understanding aggregation kinetics is critical for predicting how microplastics partition between suspended and settled states in natural water bodies.

2018 Environmental Pollution 249 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of natural organic matter and inorganic ions on the stabilization of polystyrene micro-particles

Researchers investigated how natural organic matter (NOM) and inorganic ions affect the stabilization and aggregation behavior of polystyrene nanoplastics in water, finding that NOM enhanced colloidal stability while high ionic strength promoted aggregation. The results indicate that water chemistry plays a dominant role in determining nanoplastic mobility and persistence in natural freshwater environments.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of temperature and particle concentration on aggregation of nanoplastics in freshwater and seawater

The aggregation behavior of nanoplastics in freshwater and seawater was studied at different temperatures and particle concentrations, finding that salinity, particle concentration, and temperature all significantly influenced aggregation rates with implications for nanoplastic fate in aquatic environments.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 65 citations
Article Tier 2

Understanding the stability of nanoplastics in aqueous environments: effect of ionic strength, temperature, dissolved organic matter, clay, and heavy metals

This study examined how environmental factors including ionic strength, temperature, dissolved organic matter, and clay affect the stability and aggregation of nanoplastics in water, finding that these conditions significantly influence particle behavior. Understanding nanoplastic stability is critical for predicting their fate, transport, and bioavailability in aquatic systems.

2019 Environmental Science Nano 237 citations
Article Tier 2

Aggregation kinetics of different surface-modified polystyrene nanoparticles in monovalent and divalent electrolytes

Researchers investigated how surface chemistry and morphology affect the clumping behavior (aggregation kinetics) of polystyrene nanoplastics in water, finding that surface charge and functional groups strongly govern stability, while dissolved organic matter can either inhibit or promote aggregation depending on concentration and whether mono- or divalent ions are present.

2019 Environmental Pollution 143 citations
Article Tier 2

UV-induced aggregation of polystyrene nanoplastics: effects of radicals, surface functional groups and electrolyte

UV irradiation was found to increase the aggregation of polystyrene nanoplastics to varying degrees depending on surface functional groups and electrolyte conditions, with free radicals playing a key role. Understanding aggregation behavior is important for predicting how nanoplastics behave and settle in aquatic environments.

2020 Environmental Science Nano 126 citations
Article Tier 2

Aquatic behavior and toxicity of polystyrene nanoplastic particles with different functional groups: Complex roles of pH, dissolved organic carbon and divalent cations

Researchers systematically examined how water chemistry — pH, dissolved organic carbon, and divalent calcium and magnesium ions — affects the stability, aggregation, and toxicity of polystyrene nanoplastics with different surface functional groups, finding that complex solution conditions enhanced aggregation through cation bridging and increased oxidative gut damage in Daphnia magna.

2019 Chemosphere 128 citations
Article Tier 2

Influence of environmental and biological macromolecules on aggregation kinetics of nanoplastics in aquatic systems

Researchers studied how natural macromolecules like humic acid, alginate, and proteins influence the clumping behavior of polystyrene nanoplastics in water. They found that these macromolecules generally stabilized nanoplastics in sodium chloride solutions but caused them to aggregate in calcium chloride solutions, with effects varying by pH. The findings suggest that the environmental fate and transport of nanoplastics in natural waters depends heavily on the surrounding organic molecules and water chemistry.

2020 Water Research 135 citations
Article Tier 2

Aggregation behavior of polystyrene nanoplastics: Role of surface functional groups and protein and electrolyte variation

Researchers studied how different surface coatings on polystyrene nanoplastics affect their tendency to clump together in water containing proteins and salts. They found that the type of surface functional group significantly changed how the particles aggregated, with proteins and electrolytes playing important roles in the process. The study helps explain how nanoplastics behave and transform as they move through natural water systems.

2023 Chemosphere 28 citations
Article Tier 2

Aggregation kinetics and stability of biodegradable nanoplastics in aquatic environments: Effects of UV-weathering and proteins

Researchers investigated the aggregation behavior of biodegradable nanoplastics (PBAT) in aquatic environments, finding that UV weathering and protein presence significantly alter their colloidal stability and aggregation kinetics, which influences their environmental fate and transport.

2023 Water Research 49 citations
Article Tier 2

Swelling-Induced Fragmentation and Polymer Leakage of Nanoplastics in Seawater

Researchers tracked polystyrene nanoplastics in seawater over 29 days under simulated sunlight and found that light accelerates aggregation, while also inducing swelling and fragmentation of particles and leaching of polymer components, complicating predictions of nanoplastic fate and risk in marine environments.

2022 Environmental Science & Technology 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Surface functionalization determines behavior of nanoplastic solutions in model aquatic environments

Researchers used dynamic light scattering to show that surface chemistry dictates nanoplastic fate in water: positively charged amine-coated particles remain stable across a wide salinity range, while negatively charged plain and carboxylated particles aggregate into large clusters as ionic strength or salinity increases.

2019 Chemosphere 150 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics display strong stability in aqueous environments: Insights from aggregation behaviour and theoretical calculations

Nanoplastics released into aquatic environments were found to be highly stable and resist aggregation and settling under many conditions, meaning they can persist and disperse widely rather than quickly sinking. This environmental stability makes nanoplastics particularly concerning as long-lived and mobile contaminants in water systems.

2019 Environmental Pollution 187 citations
Article Tier 2

UV/ozone induced physicochemical transformations of polystyrene nanoparticles and their aggregation tendency and kinetics with natural organic matter in aqueous systems

Researchers weathered polystyrene nanoparticles with UV light and ozone and then tested their aggregation behavior in waters containing humic acid, lysozyme, and alginate, finding that weathering-induced oxygen-containing surface groups significantly altered aggregation kinetics in ways strongly dependent on which organic molecules were present.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 50 citations
Article Tier 2

Raman spectra characterization of size-dependent aggregation and dispersion of polystyrene particles in aquatic environments.

This study used Raman spectroscopy to examine how the presence of salt, proteins, and organic matter influences the aggregation and dispersion of polystyrene nanoplastics in water. The findings show that environmental conditions significantly alter nanoplastic behavior and can complicate their detection, which has implications for understanding how nanoplastics move through aquatic environments.

2023 Chemosphere