Plastics Pollution in Aquatic Environments, 2nd Edition
A special issue of Environments (ISSN 2076-3298).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 September 2025 | Viewed by 736
Special Issue Editors
Interests: microplastics; plastic degradation and fragmentation; electron microscopy; polymer blends; green materials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: micro- and nanoplastics; correlative microscopy; spectros-copy; plastic degradation and fragmentation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The aquatic environment is known to be heavily polluted with plastics, including microplastics, which are released into the environment from everyday-use plastic items, wastewater treatment plants, polymer degradation and different industries. One of the current concerns is that when these contaminants enter the water, aquatic life may feed on them, and these microplastics may enter the food chain and cause serious health risks. However, little is known about their distribution and fate in the environment, and more research is needed to answer questions such as the following: What happens to plastics in the aquatic environment in terms of their degradation, biodegradation and fragmentation? How does the environment affect plastics?
Another important aspect is the plastic products generated from biodegradable sources that are presented as a sustainable alternative to conventional plastics and a solution to marine plastic pollution. The concern regarding bioplastics is that the additives used could leach into the environment more effectively through microplastics.
This Special Issue welcomes manuscripts on studies related to all aspects of plastic pollution in the aquatic environment, including the fate and distribution of plastics, plastic degradation, fragmentation, biodegradation, and the production of materials that promote greater sustainability and less harm to the environment. Both research and review papers are welcome.
The publications in the first edition, which we believe may be of interest to you, can be found here: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/environments/special_issues/8RY76DHG8O.
Dr. Juliana Aristéia De Lima
Dr. Karin Mattsson
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Environments is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- degradation
- fragmentation
- biodegradation
- polymer characteristics
- micro- and nanoplastics
- aquatic environment
- characterisation methods
- microscopy
- spectroscopy
- green materials
- bioplastics
- microplastics
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