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The effect of polyethylene microplastics on the disinfection of Escherichia coli by sodium hypochlorite
Summary
Researchers investigated how polyethylene microplastics affect the disinfection of Escherichia coli by sodium hypochlorite under varying pH, ionic strength, and natural organic matter conditions. They found that PE microplastics adsorbed roughly 1.5 log of E. coli within 30 seconds, providing physical protection that reduced inactivation efficiency by approximately 1 log compared to particle-free conditions, posing a potential challenge for water treatment disinfection.
The effect of polyethylene microplastics (PE-MPs) on the disinfection of Escherichia coli (E. coli) by sodium hypochlorite was investigated in different pH value, ionic strength, and NOM concentration to illustrate the impact of MPs on the pathogenic bacteria disinfection efficiency in nature water environment. The results showed that PE-MPs tended to agglomerate rather than disperse due to their strong hydrophobicity in water. Within 30 s, about 1.5 log of E. coli was adsorbed on the surface of PE-MPs, forming subsequent protection for E. coli. Thus, the presence of PE-MPs reduced the inactivation rate of E. coli. As for the particle-free solutions, the higher solution pH, the presence of natural organic matter (NOM), and the higher concentrations of cations (monovalent Na and divalent Ca) were confirmed as the major influencing factors decreasing the E. coli disinfection efficiency. However, due to the adsorption and protection of PE-MPs on E. coli, the influences of complex chemistry factors on the inactivation of E. coli were reduced. The inactivation of E. coli in PE-MPs (20 NTU) solution was 1 log lower than that in particle-free solution under the same water quality conditions. Therefore, considering the complex water chemistry, the existence of MPs could be a potential challenge for disinfection efficiency in the water treatment plants.
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