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Process-resolved effects of dibutyl phthalate on sludge anaerobic fermentation: Enzyme inhibition and metabolic disruption underlie the suppression of acidogenesis
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DBP, a chemical that leaches from microplastics, disrupts the bacteria in wastewater treatment plants that break down sewage sludge, even at very low, real-world concentrations. This matters because it shows how widespread plastic pollution can quietly interfere with the biological systems we rely on to treat waste, potentially making treatment less efficient and requiring plants to adjust their processes as plasticizer contamination increases. While this study focused on sludge treatment rather than direct human exposure, it adds to growing evidence that phthalates, common in plastics and already linked to hormone disruption in humans, can meaningfully aff
Growing evidence suggests that leaching of plasticizers such as dibutyl phthalate (DBP) from microplastics inhibits methanogenesis in anaerobic digesters treating waste activated sludge. However, how DBP influences upstream anaerobic fermentation (AF) remains unclear. This study evaluated the effects of DBP on overall sludge AF and separately on solubilization, hydrolysis, and acidogenesis processes. Volatile fatty acid (VFA) production showed a V-shaped response to environmentally relevant DBP concentrations. A reduction of 45.3% was observed at 0.5 mg/L DBP, whereas reductions exceeded 95% at 1-2 mg/L. The inhibition then weakened with increasing DBP, with a 60.5% reduction at 200 mg/L, an upper-bound level selected to bracket the maximum concentration reported in sludge. Stage-specific effects intensified with DBP concentration and peaked at 200 mg/L, where solubilization increased by 34.6%, whereas hydrolysis and acidogenesis decreased by 30.8% and 11.2%, respectively. The combined influence of these processes explained the nonmonotonic VFA response. Notably, enzyme assays and molecular simulations indicated that DBP inhibited ACK in a competitive-like manner and reduced its activity. Metagenomic analysis further indicated that DBP reduced genetic potential for downstream pathways converting pyruvate and acetyl-CoA to fermentation products. Collectively, these results reveal a DBP-induced fluctuating AF response and provide mechanistic insights into optimizing anaerobic treatment of plasticizer-laden sludge.
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Researchers found that the plasticizer benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP) — increasingly released into sludge via microplastic degradation — disrupts anaerobic digestion of waste activated sludge by activating dormant prophages that cause delayed cell lysis, impairing methane production and altering the community of key microbial players in the digestion process.
Effect of DEHP on SCFA Production by Anaerobic Fermentation of Waste Activated Sludge
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DEHP — a phthalate plasticizer that leaches from microplastics in wastewater — was found to inhibit the production of short-chain fatty acids during anaerobic fermentation of sewage sludge. This disruption could impair nutrient recovery processes in wastewater treatment, suggesting microplastic-associated chemicals interfere with wastewater treatment performance.
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Laboratory wastewater treatment experiments found that Bisphenol A (BPA), a plasticizer that leaches from many plastics, disrupted nitrification — the key microbial process that removes ammonia from wastewater — at concentrations of 10 mg/L by reducing populations of the nitrifying bacterium Nitrosomonas. Because wastewater treatment plants are critical for protecting water quality, these results highlight how plastic-derived chemical pollution can impair the very infrastructure designed to clean contaminated water.
Hydrothermal versus photo-aged polyethylene microplastics: Aging mode-dependent oxidative stress and enzyme inhibition in waste activated sludge fermentation
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When plastic waste breaks down through weathering (like heat and water exposure) or sunlight, it releases chemicals and additives that can throw off the microbes used in wastewater treatment plants to process sewage sludge. This study found that these leached chemicals cause oxidative stress and block key enzymes microbes need to break down waste, making treatment less efficient, raising concerns that aging plastic pollution could quietly undermine wastewater systems that protect our water supply and, ultimately, human health.
Reactor performance and microbial responses of sulfate-reducing bacteria sludge under stepwise polyvinyl chloride microplastic exposure
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Scientists tested how tiny PVC plastic particles (the kind found in some plastic products) affect bacteria used in wastewater treatment plants to clean up sulfate-polluted water. They found that at high microplastic levels, the treatment process temporarily struggled but bounced back as bacteria adapted, though the plastic also caused mild cell stress and released chemical additives like BPA (a compound linked to hormone disruption in humans). This matters because it shows that microplastic pollution could disrupt the wastewater treatment systems we rely on to keep our water clean, and it may also release additional harmful chemicals into the environ
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