Impact of the hydrated functional zone on the adsorption of ciprofloxacin to microplastics under the influence of UV aging

The inevitable UV aging of microplastics (MPs) is one of the key factors affecting their interaction with antibiotics. In this study, polyethylene (PE) and polystyrene (PS) MPs were aged with UV irradiation. The adsorption isotherms and kinetics of ciprofloxacin (CIP) to virgin and aged MPs were investigated through various models, and the effects of pH on the adsorption amount were explored. Characterization revealed that the surfaces of aged MPs became rougher, and the hydrophilicity increased. These aged MPs were still in the early stage of aging on the basis of their carbonyl index (CI) (<0.2) and O/C (<0.04) values. The adsorption isotherms indicated that the adsorption mechanism of aged PE was different from that of virgin PE. Compared with virgin PE, the adsorption amount of aged PE increased by 87.80–95.45%, and the adsorption rate decreased by 65.52–80.74%. However, aging did not significantly affect the equilibrium adsorption amount or adsorption rate of aged PS. The external diffusion rate (Kext) (about 2.29–0.36 h−1) was almost 30 times greater than the internal diffusion rate (Kint) in the film-pore mass transfer (FPMT) model, indicating that CIP adsorption rate was dominated by external diffusion. A hydrated functional zone is thought to form around aged MPs, thus changing the adsorption mechanism and adsorption amount of aged PE. Therefore, more attention should be given to alterations in the hydrated functional zone in the early stage of MPs aging.