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Tier 2
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Original research — experimental, observational, or case-control study. Direct primary evidence.
Remediation
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Beyond Microplastics: Implementation of a Two-Stage Removal Process for Microplastics and Chemical Oxygen Demand in Industrial Wastewater Streams
Water2024
13 citations
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Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count.
Score: 50
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0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Anika Korzin,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Anika Korzin,
Katrin Schuhen
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Erika Myers,
Anika Korzin,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Michael Sturm,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Erika Myers,
Erika Myers,
Erika Myers,
Erika Myers,
Erika Myers,
Erika Myers,
Erika Myers,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Dennis Schober,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Erika Myers,
Katrin Schuhen
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Erika Myers,
Erika Myers,
Erika Myers,
Anika Korzin,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Anika Korzin,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Michael Sturm,
Dennis Schober,
Anika Korzin,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Michael Sturm,
Anika Korzin,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Michael Sturm,
Erika Myers,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Anika Korzin,
Erika Myers,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Anika Korzin,
Anika Korzin,
Dennis Schober,
Katrin Schuhen
Anika Korzin,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Erika Myers,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Katrin Schuhen
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Dennis Schober,
Katrin Schuhen
Dennis Schober,
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Katrin Schuhen
Summary
Researchers developed and tested a two-stage pilot-scale treatment process for removing microplastics and chemical oxygen demand from industrial wastewater at a German plastic manufacturer. The system achieved average microplastic removal rates above 98% and reduced chemical oxygen demand by 94%, preventing an estimated 2.7 metric tons of microplastic per year from entering municipal wastewater systems. The study demonstrates that upstream treatment at industrial sources can effectively reduce the microplastic burden on public wastewater infrastructure.
Study Type
Environmental
Wastewater from plastic manufacturing or processing industries is often highly polluted with microplastics (MPs) and high levels of oxidizable organic matter, which results in a high chemical oxygen demand (COD). When industrial wastewater enters wastewater streams, the high microplastic load is a high burden for municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), as they are not sufficiently removed. To prevent MP from entering the WWTPs, an upstream prevention method is essential. This paper presents a pilot-scale plant study for the removal of MP and COD from industrial wastewater that was tested on-site at a plastic manufacturer in Germany. Eight test phases were performed over 3 months, with each test phase processing 1 m3 wastewater and four treatments. Per test phase, 12 samples were analyzed for 5 parameters: COD, total suspended solids (TSSs), particle count, pH, and turbidity. The results showed an average decrease in MP by 98.26 ± 2.15% measured by TSSs and 97.92 ± 2.31% measured by particle count. This prevents the emission of 1.1 kg MP/m3 water and an estimated 2.7 t MP/year. The COD was reduced efficiently by 94.3 ± 8.9%. Besides MP and COD, this treatment allows reuse of water and agglomerates, resulting in a reduction in the CO2 footprint.