Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Synthesis of Novel Bismuth-Based Catalysts for the Degradation of Microplastics in Aquatic Matrices

Researchers synthesized two bismuth-based photocatalysts — BiPO4 and Bi2O3/TiO2 — and tested them against polypropylene microplastics under UV irradiation, finding BiPO4 more effective under UV-B (up to 10.81% area reduction) and Bi2O3/TiO2 more effective under UV-A (up to 9.15% area reduction), with FTIR confirming incipient structural degradation.

2025 Microplastics
Article Tier 2

Photocatalytic Technologies for Transformation and Degradation of Microplastics in the Environment: Current Achievements and Future Prospects

This review examines photocatalytic technologies that use light-activated materials to break down microplastics in the environment. Various catalysts can generate reactive oxygen species that degrade plastic polymers into simpler, less harmful molecules. The authors assess the strengths and limitations of different photocatalytic approaches and highlight the need for scalable solutions that work under real-world environmental conditions.

2023 Catalysts 51 citations
Article Tier 2

Photocatalytic Degradation of Microplastics in Aquatic Environments: Materials, Mechanisms, Practical Challenges, and Future Perspectives

This review examines how light-activated materials called photocatalysts can break down microplastics in water into harmless byproducts using sunlight or UV light. While still facing challenges with incomplete breakdown and variable sunlight conditions, this technology offers a promising way to reduce microplastic contamination in water sources that affect human health.

2025 Water 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Decomposition of microplastics using copper oxide/bismuth vanadate-based photocatalysts: Insight mechanisms and environmental impacts

Researchers developed a light-activated catalyst using copper oxide and bismuth vanadate that can break down microplastics in wastewater. The treatment effectively degraded the plastic surfaces, though the treated water still needed dilution before being safely discharged due to residual chemicals that were harmful to test organisms. This technology could help reduce microplastic levels in wastewater before it reaches rivers and oceans where it enters the food chain.

2024 Marine Pollution Bulletin 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Modified TiO2 and ZnO photocatalysts for microplastic degradation: mechanisms, challenges, and recent advances

This review examines recent advances in using modified titanium dioxide and zinc oxide photocatalysts to degrade microplastics in the environment. Researchers summarized the mechanisms by which these catalysts break down plastic particles when activated by light, as well as the challenges that remain for practical application. The study suggests that photocatalytic degradation is a promising approach for addressing microplastic pollution, though significant technical hurdles still need to be overcome.

2026 Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences
Article Tier 2

Degradation of Micro- and Nano-Plastics by Photocatalytic Methods

This paper reviews photocatalytic methods — using light-activated catalysts — as a way to break down micro- and nano-plastics in the environment. These approaches offer a promising path toward degrading persistent plastic particles that accumulate in marine and drinking water systems.

2017 Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Applications 56 citations
Article Tier 2

Countering microplastics pollution with photocatalysis: Challenge and prospects

This review summarized the use of photocatalysis for degrading microplastics, covering catalyst types, reaction mechanisms, and operational parameters, and discussing challenges including the stability of highly polymerized plastics and prospects for scaling photocatalytic treatment to address environmental microplastic pollution.

2023 Progress in Natural Science Materials International 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Light-driven degradation of microplastics: Mechanisms, technologies, and future directions

This review examines photocatalytic technologies for breaking down microplastics using light-driven chemical processes. Researchers found that photocatalysts can potentially mineralize microplastics into carbon dioxide and water, with some approaches also enabling recovery of useful chemical products. The study highlights light-driven degradation as a promising direction for microplastic remediation, though challenges around efficiency and scalability remain to be addressed.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials Advances 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Research progress, trends, and updates on pollutants removal by Bi2WO6-based photocatalysts under visible light irradiation

This bibliometric analysis reviewed over 2,000 publications on bismuth tungstate (Bi2WO6) photocatalysts for pollutant removal under visible light. The compound has attracted growing interest for degrading organic contaminants in water. While focused on photocatalysis broadly, these catalysts have potential applications for breaking down microplastic pollutants in water treatment.

2023
Article Tier 2

Photocatalytic Perception for Degradation of Macro- and Micro-plastics

This review examines photocatalytic approaches for degrading both macro- and micro-plastics, surveying semiconductor-based and other photocatalytic systems capable of breaking down persistent plastic polymers in aquatic and terrestrial environments. The paper evaluates the mechanisms, efficiency, and scalability of photocatalysis as a remediation technology alongside conventional plastic waste management strategies.

2024 ACS symposium series 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Photodegradation of microplastics through nanomaterials: Insights into photocatalysts modification and detailed mechanisms

This review explores how nanomaterial-enhanced photocatalysts can break down microplastics that conventional water treatment fails to remove. The paper details key strategies like element doping and heterojunction construction that improve degradation efficiency, and explains the underlying mechanisms involving free radical formation and singlet oxygen oxidation.

2024 Preprints.org 8 citations
Article Tier 2

State of the art in the photochemical degradation of (micro)plastics: from fundamental principles to catalysts and applications

This review summarizes research on the photochemical degradation of plastics and microplastics into value-added products and intermediates via photocatalysis. The study covers fundamental principles and catalytic approaches for breaking down plastic pollutants that are otherwise difficult to degrade in the environment.

2023 Journal of Materials Chemistry A 94 citations
Article Tier 2

Surface Modifications of BiVO 4 Semiconductor Materials for Photocatalytic Degradation of Micro‐ and Nano‐Plastic

Researchers reviewed how modifying the surface of a semiconductor material called bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) — through metal doping, added catalysts, or nano-structuring — enhances its ability to break down microplastics and nanoplastics using sunlight. These surface engineering strategies improve the material's ability to generate reactive chemicals that degrade plastic particles, offering a photocatalytic approach to plastic pollution remediation.

2025
Article Tier 2

Photocatalytic strategy to mitigate microplastic pollution in aquatic environments: Promising catalysts, efficiencies, mechanisms, and ecological risks

This review summarizes recent advances in photocatalytic degradation of microplastics, covering catalysts, mechanisms, and reactive oxygen species generation pathways. The authors call for more realistic photocatalytic materials, better mechanistic understanding of degradation intermediates, and quantitative ecological risk assessment of photocatalysis byproducts.

2022 Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology 54 citations
Article Tier 2

Photocatalytic and biological technologies for elimination of microplastics in water: Current status

This review examines emerging photocatalytic and biological technologies for breaking down microplastics in water, since conventional treatment facilities can capture but not fully destroy these particles. Researchers found that while photocatalysis and microbial degradation show promise, their effectiveness varies widely and the underlying mechanisms are only partly understood. The study highlights the urgent need for more efficient solutions to eliminate rather than simply filter out microplastic pollution from water supplies.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 137 citations
Article Tier 2

Design and Structural Modification of Advanced Biomaterials for Photocatalytic Degradation of Micro‐ and Nano‐Plastics

Researchers designed advanced biomaterials engineered to harness sunlight for breaking down micro- and nanoplastics through photocatalysis, combining nanotechnology and materials science to create eco-friendly, biodegradable particles capable of capturing and degrading plastic pollutants across diverse environmental conditions.

2025
Article Tier 2

Efficiency of Hybrid Materials for Photocatalytic Degradation of Micro‐ and Nano‐Plastics

Researchers reviewed how hybrid materials — combinations of multiple substances engineered at the nanoscale — can serve as highly effective photocatalysts to break down microplastics and nanoplastics using light energy. These multi-functional materials improve electron separation and reaction efficiency compared to single-component catalysts, representing a promising technological pathway for removing persistent plastic particles from the environment.

2025
Article Tier 2

An Account on BiVO4 as Photocatalytic Active Matter

This review discusses bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) as a material for building tiny light-powered motors that could potentially be used to clean up environmental pollution. While not directly about microplastics, the technology is relevant because these non-toxic micromotors could be deployed to break down plastic pollutants in water using visible light. The research is still in early stages but demonstrates promising physical and chemical behaviors for future environmental applications.

2024 Accounts of Materials Research 57 citations
Article Tier 2

Photocatalytic Degradation and Remediation of Microplastics

This review chapter examines photocatalysis as a remediation strategy for microplastic pollution in aquatic and terrestrial environments, describing how solar energy conversion drives chemical reactions that degrade plastic particles. The authors assess the current state of photocatalytic methods, their mechanisms, and their potential for sustainable microplastic removal.

2024 Microplastics
Article Tier 2

New Progress in Plastic Degradation and Conversion by Photocatalysis

This review examines advances in photocatalytic plastic degradation and conversion, covering both the plastic pollution crisis driven by microplastic formation and innovative recycling approaches including primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary methods.

2024 ACS symposium series
Article Tier 2

Photocatalytic Degradation of Plastic Waste: Recent Progress and Future Perspectives

This review examined photocatalytic degradation as an environmentally friendly approach to destroying microplastic waste, focusing on nanomaterial-based semiconductors such as TiO2 and ZnO. The review highlighted recent progress and remaining challenges in developing efficient photocatalytic systems capable of fully mineralizing persistent plastic pollutants.

2024 Advances in Nanoparticles 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Photodegradation of Microplastics through Nanomaterials: Insights into Photocatalysts Modification and Detailed Mechanisms

This review examines how specially designed nanomaterials can break down microplastics in water using light-driven chemical reactions. While not directly about human health, improving microplastic removal from water sources could reduce the amount of tiny plastic particles that ultimately end up in drinking water and the food chain.

2024 Materials 28 citations
Article Tier 2

Advancing photocatalytic strategies for microplastic degradation in aquatic systems: Insights into key challenges and future pathways

This review examines how light-activated chemical reactions (photocatalysis) can break down microplastics in water, using advanced materials like doped semiconductors and metal-organic frameworks. While promising for cleaning up waterways, challenges remain around scaling these methods for real-world use and ensuring the breakdown products are not themselves harmful.

2025 Journal of environmental chemical engineering 29 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent Advances in Microplastics Removal from Water with Special Attention Given to Photocatalytic Degradation: Review of Scientific Research

This review examines methods for removing microplastics from water, with a focus on photocatalytic degradation, which uses light-activated materials to break down plastic particles. These advanced processes generate reactive molecules that can fragment microplastics into harmless byproducts. While promising, the technology still needs optimization and more research into potential harmful byproducts before it can be widely deployed.

2023 Microplastics 87 citations