We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Papers
20 resultsShowing papers similar to Ultraviolet-C and vacuum ultraviolet inducing surface degradation of microplastics
ClearTransformation of microplastics during UV-LED based water disinfection: Mechanistic insights and environmental implications
Researchers investigated how UV-based water disinfection treatments transform the physical and chemical properties of common microplastics like polystyrene, polyethylene, and PVC. They found that treatment created surface cracks, reduced water repellency, and generated various breakdown compounds, some of which showed toxicity to aquatic organisms. The study highlights that while UV disinfection effectively treats pathogens, it may inadvertently create new environmental risks by altering microplastics in the water supply.
Investigation of Surface Alteration of Microplastics by Using UV Irradiation
UV radiation causes polystyrene and other plastic microparticles to undergo photooxidative degradation, changing their surface chemistry and potentially making them more likely to adsorb or release chemical pollutants. Understanding these weathering processes is important for predicting the environmental behavior and toxicity of microplastics.
Modifications of ultraviolet irradiation and chlorination on microplastics: Effect of sterilization pattern
Researchers found that both UV irradiation and chlorination used in drinking water treatment alter the surface properties, size distribution, and chemical composition of microplastics, with combined treatments producing greater modifications and potentially increasing the release of plastic additives and adsorbed contaminants.
The effects of uv-radiation on the removal of microplastics in water using agglomeration-micro-flotation
Researchers investigated how UV radiation affects the surface wettability of six types of microplastics and its influence on removal efficiency via agglomeration-micro-flotation in water. UV treatment altered surface properties of the microplastics, and results showed that the modified wettability affected flotation performance, offering insights into using UV pre-treatment to enhance microplastic removal in water treatment systems.
Comparison of surficial modification of micro-sized polyethylenein between by UV/O3 and UVO submerged system
Researchers compared ozone and UV oxidation methods for chemically modifying the surface of polyethylene microplastics in water, finding that different treatment combinations create distinct surface changes. Understanding how weathering alters microplastic surfaces is important for predicting their environmental behavior and toxicity.
Investigating the Physicochemical Property Changes of Plastic Packaging Exposed to UV Irradiation and Different Aqueous Environments
Researchers investigated UV-driven degradation of polypropylene and PET packaging materials under different aqueous conditions, finding that UV exposure caused significant physicochemical changes including increased crystallinity and surface cracking that contribute to microplastic formation.
Impact of Chlorine or UV/H2O2 on Microplastics Under Conditions Representative of Drinking Water Treatment
Researchers exposed low- and high-density polyethylene microplastics to chlorine and UV/H2O2 at drinking-water-relevant doses and found that surface changes and cytotoxicity increases reported in earlier studies occurred only at far higher doses than used in practice.
The effects of ultraviolet irradiation treatment on the surface properties of microplastics
UV irradiation was used to modify microplastic surface properties, making them more hydrophilic, which improved flotation efficiency — a water treatment technique that relies on particle hydrophobicity — demonstrating a pretreatment approach to enhance MP removal from water.
UV sources and plastic composition influence microplastic surface degradation: Implications for plastic weathering studies
This study tested how different UV light sources change the surface of common microplastics like polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene. The results show that sunlight and lab UV lights weather plastics differently, changing their surface roughness and chemical makeup -- which matters because these surface changes affect how microplastics transport pollutants and interact with living organisms in the environment.
Effect of UV-degraded microplastics on Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF) removal
Polypropylene and polystyrene microplastics subjected to 30 days of UVC irradiation showed altered surface properties and reduced removal efficiency in dissolved air flotation (DAF) water treatment, with UV-degraded microplastics presenting greater challenges for conventional water treatment processes than pristine particles.
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.
Investigation of the effect of microplastics on the UV inactivation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in water
Researchers found that polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride microplastics significantly reduced UV disinfection effectiveness against antibiotic-resistant bacteria, as bacteria associated with microplastic surfaces were shielded from UV exposure, creating a potential public health concern.
Effects of UV-based oxidation processes on the degradation of microplastic: Fragmentation, organic matter release, toxicity and disinfection byproduct formation
This study examined how UV-based water treatment processes break down microplastics, finding that while the treatments fragment the plastics into smaller pieces, they also release potentially toxic organic compounds. The smaller fragments and released chemicals may actually pose greater risks than the original microplastics. This is an important finding because it suggests that some water purification methods could unintentionally make microplastic pollution more hazardous to human health.
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.
Effects of UV light on physicochemical changes in thermoplastic polyurethanes: Mechanism and disinfection byproduct formation
Researchers examined how UV light exposure changes the properties of thermoplastic polyurethane microplastics in water and whether those changes affect the formation of harmful disinfection byproducts during water chlorination. They found that UV exposure broke the plastic into smaller fragments and released soluble chemicals that significantly increased byproduct formation after chlorination. The findings suggest that aging microplastics in water systems could contribute to the creation of potentially harmful chemicals during standard water treatment.
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.
Insight into the effect of UVC-based advanced oxidation processes on the interaction of typical microplastics and their derived disinfection byproducts during disinfection
Scientists found that UV-based water treatment processes, while intended to clean drinking water, caused microplastics to release more organic matter and form more disinfection byproducts during chlorination. Up to 42% of the toxic byproducts formed were absorbed back onto the microplastic surfaces, creating contaminated particles. This concerning finding suggests that some common water treatment methods could unintentionally make microplastic contamination in drinking water more hazardous.
The effect of Ozonation on the chemical structure of microplastics
Ozone treatment of microplastics in water caused oxidative changes to polymer surfaces including carbonyl group formation and surface cracking, which altered hydrophobicity and potentially increased the capacity of treated particles to adsorb contaminants, suggesting that ozonation in water treatment may chemically transform rather than eliminate microplastic hazards.
From Macro to Micro Plastics; Influence of Photo-oxidative Degradation
This study used simulated UV aging to investigate how photo-oxidative degradation of common plastics drives fragmentation from macro to micro scale, characterizing the surface property changes and structural breakdown that generate microplastic particles in the environment.
Volatile organic compounds generation pathways and mechanisms from microplastics in water: Ultraviolet, chlorine and ultraviolet/chlorine disinfection
Researchers examined how UV, chlorine, and combined UV/chlorine disinfection treatments cause microplastics to release volatile organic compounds, identifying distinct degradation pathways for polypropylene, polystyrene, and PVC that generate diverse chemical byproducts in treated water.