Call for Papers: Micro- and Nano-plastics: What’s Hidden Beneath

Micro- and nano-plastics have emerged as an alarming and pervasive environmental threat, with growing evidence pointing to their potential impacts on ecosystems and human health. These tiny particles infiltrate natural systems, accumulate in food chains, and have now been detected in human tissues including blood, lungs, brain, and placenta—raising urgent concerns about their toxicological effects and long-term consequences.

This Special Issue from Environment & Health invites high-impact research that advances our understanding of the sources, behavior, interactions, and health implications of Micro- and nano-plastics in the environment. We welcome high-quality Articles, Reviews, Perspectives, and Viewpoints in, but not limited to, the following areas:

• Methods and Instrumentation for Separation and Detection of Micro- and nano-plastics in Complex Environments
• Source Apportionment, Spatiotemporal Distribution, and Big Data Applications
• Composite Pollution Effects Involving Micro- and nano-plastics
• Interactions with Microorganisms and the Plastisphere Effects
• Multimedia Interface Processes Involving Micro- and nano-plastics
• Uptake, Transport, and Food Chain Transfer in Animals and Plants
• Biotoxicity and Ecological Risk Assessment of Micro- and nano-plastics
• Human Exposure, Bioaccumulation, and Health Risks of Micro- and nano-plastics
• Environmental Behavior and Control of Tire Wear Particles and Their Constituents
• Source Mitigation, Physicochemical Degradation, and Biodegradation Technologies of Micro- and nano-plastics
• Remediation and Availability Reduction of Micro- and nano-plastics in Water and Soil Environment

Organizing Editors

Yongming Luo, Ph.D., Guest Editor
Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China

Baoshan Xing, Ph.D., Guest Editor
University of Massachusetts Amherst, United States

Hanzhong Jia, Ph.D., Guest Editor
Northwest A&F University, China

Jianming Xue, PhD., Guest Editor
New Zealand Forest Research Institute (Scion), New Zealand

Xianzheng Yuan, Ph.D., Guest Editor
Shandong University, China

Yang Song, Ph.D., Guest Editor
Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China

Chen Tu, Ph.D., Guest Editor
Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China

Qian Liu, Ph.D., Executive Editor, Environment & Health
Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China

Submission Information

Submissions are welcome through December 31, 2025.

Authors who submit their manuscripts to this Special Issue by the deadline may apply for an APC waiver if their paper is accepted after peer review. Appropriate consideration will be given for a waiver providing the paper has already met the scientific and editorial standards required for publication in Environment & Health.

For more information on submission requirements, please visit the journal’s Author Guidelines page.

Papers accepted for publication for this Special Issue will be available ASAP (as soon as publishable) online and will be included in the next available issue of the journal. After all submissions have been published, they will then be compiled online in a dedicated landing page to form the Special Issue. The peer review process for all papers will be managed by the journal editors to ensure rigor is maintained. Environment & Health is a fully open access journal; thus, your paper will be available to anyone, at anytime, anywhere in the world.

How to submit

• Log in to the ACS Publishing Center.
• Select the "Journals" tab.
• Choose Environment & Health as your journal.
• Click "Submit."
• Select your manuscript type, and, under "Special Issue Selection," choose "Micro- and Nano-plastics: What’s Hidden Beneath."

Please see our Author Guidelines for more information on submission requirements.