The interactions of microplastics and chemical pollutants

Once microplastics enter the aquatic environment, they have the potential to interact with chemical pollutants. These chemicals can adhere to the surface of the microplastics, or penetrate into their bulk where they can concentrate to many times higher than the surrounding water. Consequently, this chapter concerns the relevant chemical pollutants, their chemical structure, the nature of the interactions of microplastics with these pollutants, the various factors which affect the way in which microplastics become contaminated with pollutants, as well as a detailed review of the reported levels of pollutants on contaminated microplastics in the aquatic environment.