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Microplastics (MPs) pollution in the environment has become a global hotspot, but there is insufficient research on MPs in soils of large cities. This study investigated the pollution status of MPs in soils in different functional areas (commercial, tourist, industrial, and residential areas) of the Xi'an metropolitan area. The average abundances of MPs were 2218 items/kg in Xi'an city, 1329 items/kg in Xianyang city and 1400 items/kg in Yangling city. All MPs presented different shapes and were dominated by fragment and fiber. The 0-0.5 mm MPs accounted for the largest proportion. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) was the predominant polymer type for MPs. The results showed that the soil in the Xi'an metropolitan area was polluted by MPs, with the pollution of MPs in Xi'an city being more severe than other two cities. This could be related to the advanced urbanization and industrialization process. Moreover, industrial and tourist areas had frequent industrial and human activities, so their MPs pollution was the worst. In addition, residential areas and some commercial areas far away from pollution sources had lower pollution levels and a more uniform distribution of MPs. This study may provide data and valuable reference for the investigation of soil MPs pollution in the Xi'an metropolitan area., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Plastics pollution in global soil systems is becoming a severely global issue and potential threat to terrestrial ecosystem serves and human health. Herein, in order to determine the degradability and ecological effects of polyethylene (PE) films, we measured the weight loss and characterization of PE films and analyzed variation in microbial community. The results of weight loss, SEM and FTIR spectra exhibited that PE films had unique degradation performance under different conditions. Simultaneously, we investigated the effects of PE films on the microbial community, and the microbiota colonizing on plastics. PE films may change the soil microbial community composition in soil, and hold the post of unique matrix for microbial colonization. These results indicate that the degradation of PE films and microbial community composition in soil can be affected by different conditions (soil layer, time and plants). By assessing the alteration of microbial community composition and PE films in soil, this work will contribute to enhance our understanding on the potential risks of plastics on soil ecosystems and provide a scientific basis for understanding the ecological effect of plastics on soil functions. [Display omitted] • Degradation characteristics of PE films in soil were assessed. • PE films have different effects on microbial community under different conditions. • Compared with soil, PE films surfaces have unique microbial community composition. • The interactions between PE films and soil microbial community were explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interaction between microplastics and soil is essential for the environmental fate of plastic particles. In this study, polystyrene microplastic particles (PSMPs) with a size of 0.047 μm were selected as the representative of microplastics. Five soil samples from different provinces in China were selected (named Harbin S1, Huainan S2, Jiangxi S3, Shaanxi S4 and Hainan S5, respectively) and their interaction characteristics and mechanism with PSMPs were investigated, which provided new insights into the environmental behavior of microplastics. The experimental data showed that the pseudo-first-order model well fit for the sorption kinetics data, and the microplastic sorption ability of the soil accorded with the following sequence: S3 > S2 > S1 > S4 > S5. The sorption isotherm data of PSMPs on soils fit a linear model well (R 2 = 0.998). The sorption of MPs on soils was affected by pH, and the sorption ability weakened as the pH increased. Soil physicochemical properties play important roles in sorption of PSMPs, especially the content of soil organic carbon. The sorption capacity was positively correlated with soil organic carbon (R 2 = 0.999) and Fe 2 O 3 content (R 2 = 0.967), while the sorption of clay showed opposite trend (R 2 = 0.952). The sorption mechanisms of PSMPs on soils included surface sorption, electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. Results of this study could be useful to better study the role of soil in the fate and transportation of plastic particles. Unlabelled Image • The sorption of polystyrene microplastics (PSMPs) on five soils was investigated. • Soil organic carbon (SOC), clay and Fe 2 O 3 were vital in the sorption of PSMPs. • K d was positively correlated with SOC and Fe 2 O 3 , but negatively with clay content. • The sorption mechanism mainly included electrostatic and hydrophobic interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]