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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Abiotic plastic leaching contributes to ocean acidification
ClearDissolved organic carbon leaching from plastics stimulates microbial activity in the ocean
Researchers discovered that ocean plastics continuously leach dissolved organic carbon into seawater — an estimated 23,600 metric tons per year globally — fueling the growth of bacteria at the base of the marine food web. Because plastic pollution is projected to increase tenfold in the coming decade, this plastic-derived carbon input could significantly alter microbial communities and ocean chemistry in ways not yet fully understood.
Plastic leachates promote marine protozoan growth
Researchers studied how chemicals leaching from ocean plastics affect the growth of a marine protozoan and its associated bacteria. They found that plastic leachates dramatically increased dissolved organic carbon in seawater, boosting protozoan growth by up to ten times compared to controls. The study suggests that plastic pollution may be altering the base of marine food webs by providing an unnatural carbon source that shifts microbial community dynamics.
Dissolved organic carbon leaching from microplastics and bioavailability in coastal ecosystems
Researchers evaluated dissolved organic carbon leaching from polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics in coastal ecosystems, finding that up to 85% of the leached carbon was biodegradable by microbial communities. The study found that different coastal environments, such as seagrass beds and river mouths, showed varying abilities to utilize this plastic-derived carbon, suggesting microplastics may be an underappreciated source of dissolved organic carbon in marine systems.
Impacts of climatic stressors on dissolved organic matter leaching from microplastics and their effects on biogeochemical processes: A review
This review examines how microplastics release dissolved organic matter as they break down in the environment, and how climate change may accelerate this process. The chemicals leached from degrading plastics can disrupt microbial communities and natural nutrient cycles, potentially increasing greenhouse gas production and altering the ecosystems that ultimately support our food and water supplies.
Microplastics, an Uncharacterized Fraction of the Ocean´s Organic Carbon Inventory
This study tested whether standard elemental analysis used to measure ocean organic carbon also inadvertently counts plastic-derived carbon from microplastics in samples. The results show that microplastics represent an uncharacterized fraction of ocean organic carbon inventories, potentially affecting estimates of the ocean's role in the global carbon cycle.
Impact of plastic pollution on atmospheric carbon dioxide
Researchers modeled the contribution of plastic pollution to atmospheric CO2 using an earth system climate model and found that carbon leaching from marine plastics or incineration has only a negligible effect on global climate, though emissions from plastic production itself are more significant.
Assessing the impact of simulated ocean acidification on the photodegradation of selected microplastics
This study assessed how simulated ocean acidification conditions affect the photodegradation rate and products of plastic polymers, finding that lower pH accelerates surface oxidation and may alter the toxicity of plastic degradation leachates.
Warming exponentially stimulates photoleaching of dissolved organic matter from multiple microplastics
Researchers quantified dissolved organic matter release from four common marine microplastics (PE, PP, PET, PVC) under UV light at temperatures ranging from 10–35°C, finding that warming exponentially increased photoleaching rates — with implications for how climate change may accelerate microplastic-derived carbon cycling in ocean surface waters.
Microplastics Contamination versus Inorganic Particles: Effects on the Dynamics of Marine Dissolved Organic Matter
This study compared how microplastic contamination affects the cycling of dissolved organic carbon in seawater versus the effects of naturally occurring inorganic particles, finding that microplastics have distinct impacts on organic matter dynamics. The results suggest microplastics may alter carbon cycling in the ocean in ways that natural particles do not.
Ocean acidification has a strong effect on communities living on plastic in mesocosms
A mesocosm experiment found that simulated ocean acidification significantly changed the microbial communities colonizing plastic debris (the "plastisphere"), increasing the relative abundance of pathogenic and parasite bacteria and altering nutrient cycling. This is concerning because ocean acidification driven by climate change could make plastic pollution even more dangerous by turning floating plastics into enhanced vectors for harmful microbes.
Microplastic contaminants potentially distort our understanding of the ocean's carbon cycle
Researchers tested whether conventional methods for quantifying organic matter and isotopic composition from marine samples are distorted by microplastic-derived carbon from polyethylene and polystyrene, using accelerator mass spectrometry on estuarine sediment-plastic admixtures to assess contamination effects on carbon cycle measurements.
Photochemical dissolution of buoyant microplastics to dissolved organic carbon: Rates and microbial impacts
Common ocean surface microplastics (PE, PP, EPS) were irradiated under simulated sunlight, which fragmented and oxidized the polymers and produced dissolved organic carbon as a significant byproduct. The study identifies sunlight-driven photochemical dissolution as an important but poorly quantified removal mechanism for buoyant microplastics from the ocean surface.
Continuous long-term monitoring of leaching from microplastics into ambient water – A multi-endpoint approach
Researchers conducted continuous long-term monitoring of leaching from 16 types of microplastics into water, finding that most released significant dissolved organic carbon and various chemicals, with leaching patterns varying by polymer type and environmental conditions.
Augmentation of global marine sedimentary carbon storage in the age of plastic
Researchers quantified plastic carbon inputs to the global marine sedimentary system, finding that approximately 7.8 Mt of plastic carbon is deposited on the seafloor annually, exceeding the natural organic carbon burial rate and representing a previously unaccounted anthropogenic component of the marine carbon cycle.
Microplastic Pollution in Oceans: A Barrier to Achieve Low Carbon Society
Microplastics in the ocean are not just a pollution problem — they may also impair the ocean's ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, undermining one of Earth's most important climate regulators. This review examines how ocean microplastic pollution interferes with carbon sequestration processes and argues that reducing plastic production and improving waste management are essential steps for both climate and environmental health.
Exploring Methods for Understanding and Quantifying Plastic-Derived Dissolved Organic Matter
This review explores methods for quantifying plastic-derived dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in aquatic environments, examining the limitations of count- and mass-based plastic reporting and proposing carbon-cycle frameworks to better contextualize plastics as a globally significant organic carbon pool.
Microplastics and Their Degradation Products in Surface Waters: A Missing Piece of the Global Carbon Cycle Puzzle
This viewpoint article argues that microplastics and their degradation products in surface waters represent a missing piece in global carbon cycle models. As microplastics break down into dissolved organic carbon, they could affect how oceans store and process carbon, with implications for climate science and environmental monitoring.
Investigating whether aquatic microbes are inhibited by dissolved organic carbon formed during the photo-dissolution of microplastics
Researchers investigated whether dissolved organic carbon produced when sunlight degrades floating microplastics inhibits aquatic microbial growth, finding that while much of the carbon can fuel microbial activity, some photochemically produced compounds may have inhibitory effects.
Solar radiation stimulates release of semi-labile dissolved organic matter from microplastics
Researchers found that solar radiation causes microplastics to release dissolved organic matter into seawater, with low-density polyethylene releasing about five times more carbon per gram per day than polystyrene. The released organic compounds included nitrogen- and sulfur-containing molecules, and a portion overlapped with compounds found naturally in coastal waters. Incubation experiments showed that microbes could utilize 9-19% of this plastic-derived organic matter within 30 days, suggesting it becomes part of the marine carbon cycle.
Microplastics Reshape the Fate of Aqueous Carbon by Inducing Dynamic Changes in Biodiversity and Chemodiversity
Researchers found that microplastics reshape aqueous carbon cycling by releasing chemical additives that inhibit autotrophic bacteria, promoting CO2 emissions, and stimulating microbial metabolic pathways that transform dissolved organic matter into more stable, less bioavailable forms.
Microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter and its biogeochemical behaviors in aquatic environments: A review
This review examines how microplastics release dissolved organic matter (MP-DOM) as they break down in water, and how these released chemicals affect water ecosystems. MP-DOM can interact with other pollutants and alter carbon cycling in natural waters, with the type and amount varying based on plastic composition and weathering conditions. Understanding what microplastics release into water as they degrade is important because these dissolved chemicals may have their own toxic effects on aquatic life and water quality.
Microbial carrying capacity and carbon biomass of plastic marine debris
Researchers estimated the microbial carrying capacity and carbon biomass of floating marine plastic debris, finding that the collective surface area of ocean plastic supports a substantial microbial community whose carbon biomass, while modest relative to total ocean microbial carbon, represents a novel and persistent ecological niche with potential biogeochemical significance.
From pollution to ocean warming: The climate impacts of marine microplastics
This review examined the largely overlooked role of marine microplastics in driving climate change, covering how they disrupt oceanic carbon pumps, alter biogeochemical cycling, and directly emit greenhouse gases during UV degradation. The authors found that microplastics reduce the efficiency of the biological carbon pump by impairing marine organisms that sequester carbon, creating a feedback loop between plastic pollution and ocean warming.
The Influence of Ocean Acidification on The Surface Alteration of Microplastics
Researchers exposed virgin microplastics to normal seawater (pH 8.0) and acidified seawater (pH 7.7) for 10 days, using field emission scanning electron microscopy to show that ocean acidification accelerates surface aging and physical damage to microplastic particles, suggesting that increasing ocean acidity may enhance chemical leaching from plastics.