We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Biodegradable Microplastics in Municipal Wastewater and Sludge Treatment Processes: A Review on Occurrence, Fate, and Effects
AI summary Read the abstract
Biodegradable plastics — marketed as a greener alternative to conventional plastics — can still fragment into microplastics inside wastewater treatment plants, where they undergo mechanical wear, additive leaching, and microbial degradation, with incompletely understood effects on the microbial communities that make treatment work. This review synthesises current knowledge on how biodegradable microplastics behave in wastewater and sludge systems, and argues that their risks in treatment infrastructure are underappreciated and require urgent dedicated research.
Biodegradable plastics have emerged as reliable alternatives to conventional plastics for alleviating global plastic pollution. However, biodegradable plastics could also rupture into microplastics and inevitably accumulate in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). The fate and effects of biodegradable microplastics (BMPs) in wastewater treatment and sludge disposal processes are of great concern but have not yet been reviewed. This review comprehensively expounded the occurrence, fate, and consequential effects of BMPs in WWTPs. Specifically, the environmental contents of BMPs and the corresponding detection techniques were analyzed and compared with conventional microplastics. Furthermore, the mechanical aging, additive release, extracellular hydrolysis, and microbial biotransformation of BMPs were documented meticulously. Also, the effects of BMPs on microbial community structure and function, as well as pollutant adsorption, were underscored. The obtained knowledge would update our understanding of the risk and control of BMPs in WWTPs. Recommendations for future investigations are made.
More Papers Like This
Research advances of biodegradable microplastics in wastewater treatment plant: Current knowledge and future directions
AI summary Read the abstract
This review examines how biodegradable plastics break down into microplastics during wastewater treatment and their effects on the treatment process. Biodegradable microplastics can alter microbial communities in treatment systems and carry pollutants on their surfaces due to abundant oxygen-containing chemical groups. The findings challenge the notion that biodegradable plastics are a complete solution to plastic pollution, since they still generate microplastics that could affect water quality and human health.
[Microplastics in wastewater treatment: current status and future trends].
AI summary Read the abstract
This review summarizes current research on microplastic occurrence, removal, and fate in wastewater treatment plants, noting that while plants capture most microplastics in activated sludge, significant numbers still escape into effluent. The sludge itself then becomes a major pathway for microplastics to enter agricultural soils when applied as fertilizer. Future treatment improvements and sludge management policies are needed to reduce these release pathways.
Micro- and nanoplastics in granular sludge systems: mechanisms of disruption, retention, and microbial adaptation in wastewater treatment technologies
AI summary Read the abstract
This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics disrupt the biological systems used to treat wastewater, focusing on granular sludge technologies. Plastic particles damage the microbial communities that break down waste by causing oxidative stress and breaking apart the protective structures that hold bacteria together. This matters because if wastewater treatment becomes less effective due to plastic contamination, more pollutants including microplastics could pass through into waterways that supply drinking water.
Differential impacts of conventional and biodegradable microplastics on treatment performance and bacterial community in sequencing batch reactors
AI summary Read the abstract
"Biodegradable" plastics are often assumed to be the eco-friendly choice, but this study found that biodegradable microplastics (PLA) actually disrupted wastewater treatment more than conventional plastics like polystyrene or polyethylene, reducing bacteria's ability to break down waste and potentially allowing harmful microbes to thrive. This matters because wastewater treatment plants help keep our water supply clean, so if biodegradable plastics interfere with that process, it could undermine efforts to protect water quality even as we try to reduce plastic pollution.
Fate of microplastics in wastewater treatment plants and their environmental dispersion with effluent and sludge
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers tracked microplastics through a wastewater treatment plant and found 12 different polymer types in effluents and sludge, with smaller particles (25–104 μm) most abundant and fibres displaying lower sizes than fragments. The study demonstrates that WWTPs do not fully remove microplastics and that processed sludge marketed as soil amendment carries plastic contamination.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.