Can I read Atmospheric microplastics and nanoplastics as vectors of primary air pollutants - A theoretical study on the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) case on EtoBox?

Atmospheric microplastics and nanoplastics as vectors of primary air pollutants - A theoretical study on the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) case by Daniela E. Ortega; Diego Cortés-Arriagada is a Environmental Science article available to read on EtoBox.

What is Atmospheric microplastics and nanoplastics as vectors of primary air pollutants - A theoretical study on the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) case about?

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) microplastics and nanoplastics are ubiquitously present in the atmosphere as atmospheric and airborne forms (PET-aMPs). Using first-principles calculations, we analyze the uptake of primary air pollutants onto PET-aMPs, focusing on their stabilities, adsorption mechanisms, and thermochemistry. The results show that PET-aMPs are selective for the spontaneous adsorption of CO, CO2, NO, N2O, NO2, NH3, and SO2, reaching stable adsorption energies of 6–20 kcal/mol per molecule, with comparable uptake ability than carbon-based materials, metals/metalloids, and metal oxide surfaces. Then, PET-aMPs become a vector for coexisting air pollutants in the atmosphere, which adsorb by inner or outer adsorption depending on the molecular polarity (dipole moment) and atomic constitution (electronegativity) of gaseous molecules. Also, atmospheric H2O and O2 are not competitive molecules, and ozone could enhance adsorption due to surface oxidation and structure breakdown. The interplay of electrostatic (46–61%) and dispersion forces (21–58%) drives the adsorption mechanism, where low-polar pollutants display almost a balanced electrostatic vs. dispersion contribution,

Who reads Atmospheric microplastics and nanoplastics as vectors of primary air pollutants - A theoretical study on the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) case?

Author

Daniela E. Ortega; Diego Cortés-Arriagada

Publisher

Elsevier BV

Published

2023

Language

EN

Field

Environmental Science (Physical Sciences)