Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of UV aged microplastics on the heavy metals Pb(II) and Cu(II) in aqueous solutions

Researchers examined how UV aging affects the adsorption of lead and copper onto polypropylene, polyethylene, and polystyrene microplastics, finding that aging creates new oxidation functional groups that enhance heavy metal adsorption capacity.

2022 Chemosphere 130 citations
Article Tier 2

Enhanced copper adsorption by polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics: The role of biofilm development and chemical aging

Researchers studied how chemical aging and biofilm growth on polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics changed their ability to absorb copper from water. Both processes significantly increased the surface area and chemical reactivity of the plastics, making them absorb substantially more copper than fresh microplastics. The study suggests that as microplastics age and develop biofilms in natural waterways, they become increasingly effective at concentrating heavy metals, potentially altering how these contaminants move through aquatic environments.

2025 Environmental Research 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Biofilm enhances the copper (II) adsorption on microplastic surfaces in coastal seawater: Simultaneous evidence from visualization and quantification

Researchers found that biofilm formation on microplastic surfaces significantly enhanced copper adsorption in coastal seawater, with visual and quantitative evidence showing that biofilm-coated microplastics accumulate substantially more copper than uncoated particles, increasing their potential as vectors for metal contaminant transport.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 27 citations
Article Tier 2

Biofilm colonization on non-degradable and degradable microplastics change the adsorption of Cu(II) and facilitate the dominance of pathogenic microbes

Researchers studied how biofilm growth on both degradable and non-degradable microplastics alters their ability to absorb copper from water. They found that aging and biofilm colonization significantly increased the adsorption capacity of both polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics for copper ions. The study also revealed that biofilm-covered microplastics harbored a higher proportion of potentially pathogenic microbes, raising concerns about microplastics as vectors for both heavy metals and harmful bacteria.

2025 Environmental Research 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of heavy metals by biofilm-coated microplastics in aquatic environments: Mechanisms, isotherm and kinetic processes, and influencing factors

This review synthesizes research on how biofilms—microbial coatings that naturally form on microplastics in water—alter the particles' ability to absorb heavy metals like lead, copper, and cadmium, finding that biofilmed microplastics generally adsorb more metal than bare plastic and that electrostatic forces and surface complexation are the dominant mechanisms. This matters because microplastics coated in both biofilm and toxic metals may deliver a double dose of contamination to organisms that ingest them. The review identifies key gaps, including how competitive metal mixtures and shifting biofilm composition over time affect this combined pollution risk.

2026 The Science of The Total Environment
Article Tier 2

Effects of biofilm formation on triclosan adsorption by UV-aged and pristine polystyrene microplastics in aquatic environments

Researchers investigated how biofilm formation on UV-aged versus pristine polystyrene microplastics affected triclosan adsorption, finding that biofilm-colonized aged microplastics had altered surface properties that changed triclosan uptake compared to unaged particles.

2025 Water Research X 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Sorption behavior of Pb(II) onto polyvinyl chloride microplastics affects the formation and ecological functions of microbial biofilms

Researchers found that lead sorption onto PVC microplastics significantly affected microbial biofilm formation and ecological functions, with lead-enriched microplastics altering biofilm community structure and metabolic activities in aquatic systems.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of Cu2+ by UV aged polystyrene in aqueous solution

UV-aged polystyrene microplastics showed altered surface chemistry and enhanced adsorption of copper ions compared to virgin particles, with the degree of adsorption increasing with aging duration. The findings indicate that environmental weathering transforms microplastics into more potent heavy metal carriers, intensifying their role as pollutant vectors.

2022 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 73 citations
Article Tier 2

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.

2020 Journal of Hazardous Materials 852 citations
Article Tier 2

Untangling the role of biotic and abiotic ageing of various environmental plastics toward the sorption of metals

Using factorial experiments, researchers disentangled the contributions of UV weathering, microbial biofilm colonization, and their interaction to metal sorption onto five types of environmental plastic, finding that both biotic and abiotic aging independently and synergistically enhance metal binding to plastic surfaces.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 17 citations
Article Tier 2

The effects of metals and polymer types on the development of biofilm on microplastic surface

Researchers examined biofilm development on three polymer types (PVC, polystyrene, and polyethylene) in the presence of three heavy metals (lead, chromium, and cadmium) to determine how metal contamination influences the formation and composition of plastisphere communities. The study assessed whether metal-microplastic co-contamination alters the structure of microbial biofilms that colonize plastic surfaces in aquatic environments.

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

The Effect of Different Aging Methods on the Heavy Metal Adsorption Capacity of Microplastics

Polystyrene and polylactic acid microplastics were aged under UV and high-temperature conditions, and aged microplastics showed altered surface properties that affected their adsorption capacity for heavy metals cadmium, copper, and zinc.

2024 Land Degradation and Development 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Study on the Adsorption Behavior and Mechanism of Heavy Metals in Aquatic Environment before and after the Aging of Typical Microplastics

Researchers investigated the adsorption behavior and mechanisms of heavy metals by typical microplastics before and after environmental aging, finding that aging significantly alters microplastics' surface properties and capacity to bind metals such as cadmium and lead in aquatic systems.

2024
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of copper by naturally and artificially aged polystyrene microplastics and subsequent release in simulated gastrointestinal fluid

Researchers compared how naturally and artificially aged polystyrene microplastics adsorb copper and then release it in simulated digestive fluids. They found that naturally aged microplastics from a lake adsorbed the most copper, largely due to metallic oxide deposits on their surfaces. The study suggests that aged microplastics may act as vectors for transporting metals into organisms through ingestion, with the aging method significantly affecting how much metal is carried and released.

2024 Environmental Science Processes & Impacts 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Monitoring of biofilm development and physico-chemical changes of floating microplastics at the air-water interface

Researchers monitored biofilm development on floating polyethylene microplastics and found that biofilm growth increased particle density, metal adsorption capacity (52% higher for lead), and surface cracking, but did not cause the particles to sink even after 12 weeks.

2023 Environmental Pollution 43 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption properties and mechanism of Cu(II) on virgin and aged microplastics in the aquatic environment

Researchers examined how UV aging changes the surface properties of polyamide and polylactic acid microplastics and affects their ability to adsorb copper ions in water. The study found that UV irradiation altered the physical and chemical characteristics of both plastic types, increasing their capacity to bind heavy metals. Evidence indicates that weathered microplastics may act as more effective carriers of heavy metal contaminants in aquatic environments compared to virgin plastics.

2024 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 10 citations
Review Tier 2

Research progress on the role of biofilm in heavy metals adsorption-desorption characteristics of microplastics: A review

This review examines how biofilm formation on microplastics in aquatic environments modifies their properties and changes how they adsorb and release heavy metals. Researchers found that biofilm-covered microplastics behave significantly differently than bare microplastics, which has important implications for understanding the combined environmental risks of microplastics and heavy metal contamination.

2023 Environmental Pollution 53 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as an emerging anthropogenic vector of trace metals in freshwater: Significance of biofilms and comparison with natural substrates

Scientists placed virgin polystyrene microplastics in a eutrophic urban lake and a drinking water reservoir for four weeks to allow biofilm development, then measured trace metal accumulation, finding that biofilm-coated microplastics accumulated significantly more metals than virgin plastics or natural substrates.

2020 Water Research 301 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of particle size on the colonization of biofilms and the potential of biofilm-covered microplastics as metal carriers

Industrial and food-grade polystyrene microplastics of different sizes were colonized by biofilms in aquatic conditions, with smaller particles supporting denser biofilm growth and showing greater metal adsorption capacity than larger ones. The findings suggest that particle size is a key factor governing both the ecological properties of the plastisphere and the capacity of microplastics to concentrate heavy metals.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 73 citations
Article Tier 2

Biofilm facilitates metal accumulation onto microplastics in estuarine waters

This study demonstrated that biofilm colonization on microplastics in estuarine waters significantly enhanced their sorption of metals such as copper and zinc, suggesting biofouling changes the contaminant-carrying capacity of plastic debris.

2019 The Science of The Total Environment 241 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption behavior of Cu(II) and Cr(VI) on aged microplastics in antibiotics-heavy metals coexisting system

Researchers investigated how antibiotics affect the adsorption of copper and chromium onto aged polystyrene and PVC microplastics, finding that antibiotic co-contamination alters heavy metal binding behavior on weathered plastics in aqueous environments.

2021 Chemosphere 169 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption properties and influencing factors of Cu(II) on polystyrene and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics in seawater

Researchers investigated how polystyrene and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics adsorb copper ions in seawater, characterizing adsorption kinetics and influencing factors to understand microplastics' role as vectors for heavy metal pollutants in marine environments.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 126 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of biofilm colonization on Pb(II) adsorption onto poly(butylene succinate) microplastic during its biodegradation

Researchers found that biofilm colonization on biodegradable PBS microplastics during degradation increased lead adsorption roughly tenfold compared to virgin plastic, suggesting that degrading biodegradable plastics may concentrate heavy metals more effectively in aquatic environments.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 83 citations
Article Tier 2

Investigation of the process of adsorption of heavy metals in coastal sands containing micro-plastics, with special attention to the effect of aging process and bacterial spread in micro-plastics

Researchers investigated how aging and bacterial culture affect the adsorption of heavy metals (lead, cadmium, copper, zinc, chromium, and nickel) in coastal sands containing microplastics. UV aging for 14 days increased metal adsorption capacity by up to 60%, and simultaneous bacterial culture with aging further increased adsorption power by up to 80% for all studied metals.

2023 Archives of Environmental Protection 4 citations