| Title: | Advanced TiO2-based catalysts for polypropylene degradation in aquatic media |
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| Authors: | ID Egea-Corbacho, Agata (Author)
ID Martín-García, Ana Pilar (Author)
ID Salas-Calvo, J.M. (Author)
ID Sendra, Marta (Author) |
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| Files: |  URL - Source URL, visit https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301479725032657?via%3Dihub
 PDF - Presentation file, download (1,60 MB)
MD5: 0BA921D3EF60D4679F89DCD30D1ADA60
PDF - Presentation file, download (265,18 KB)
MD5: E1EB27997C13D8501BDF44DFFE82FE06
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| Language: | English |
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| Typology: | 1.01 - Original Scientific Article |
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| Organization: |  NIB - National Institute of Biology
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| Abstract: | Plastics are polluting our environment and oceans with a large number and variety of organic and inorganic compounds that arise as a consequence of the current industrial development. Every year we release to the environment millions of tons of plastics whose total elimination may take centuries. The exponential increase in the production of this material is causing a serious environmental problem, resulting in the generation of a large amount of this waste. Microplastics (MPs) are released into the environment in different ways, but one of the most important is through effluents from wastewater treatment plants, since no specific method is used to eliminate or degrade these MPs before they are discharged into the environment. Polypropylene (PP), together with low-density polyethylene (PE), are the most common MPs found in the environment, being released in an amount of approximately 112 million tons per year. Three catalysts, ZnO/TiO2, CeO2/TiO2 and ZnO-CeO2/TiO2, were synthesized using the incipient wetness impregnation technique and tested under UV-A and UV-B irradiation for the degradation of polypropylene (PP) particles. A degradation of 6.6 ± 1.6 % of MP area in wastewater was obtained, slightly lower than the 8.4 ± 1.0 % observed with ultrapure water, likely due to the presence of organic matter and other compounds in the Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) outlet. Additionally, toxicity assays using Phaeodactylum tricornutum revealed significant differences among treatments. The ZnO-CeO2/TiO2 catalyst resulted in lower growth inhibition compared to ZnO/TiO2, which showed toxicity levels similar to those of UV-aged PP-MPs without catalyst, highlighting the role of catalyst composition in modulating the environmental toxicity of degraded microplastics. |
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| Keywords: | wastewater, photocatalysis, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), polymer degradation, environmental remediation |
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| Publication status: | Published |
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| Publication version: | Version of Record |
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| Publication date: | 01.11.2025 |
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| Year of publishing: | 2025 |
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| Number of pages: | str. 1-9 |
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| Numbering: | Vol. 394, [article no.] 127289 |
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| PID: | 20.500.12556/DiRROS-30009  |
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| UDC: | 504.5:574.64 |
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| ISSN on article: | 1095-8630 |
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| DOI: | 10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127289 |
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| COBISS.SI-ID: | 279491075 |
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| Note: | Nasl. z nasl. zaslona;
Soavtorji: A.P. Martín-García, J.M. Salas-Calvo, D. Coello, R. Rodríguez, I. Moreno-Garrido, M. Sendra, M.P. Yeste;
Opis vira z dne 27. 5. 2026;
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| Publication date in DiRROS: | 11.06.2026 |
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| Views: | 46 |
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| Downloads: | 40 |
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