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Resilience of anaerobic digestion to polypropylene microplastic contamination: Kinetic and structural evidence
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This life cycle assessment evaluated the environmental impacts of plastic products or alternative materials across their full production, use, and disposal cycle. The analysis identified key hotspots of environmental burden and compared trade-offs between plastic and substitute materials for informed decision-making.
The increasing occurrence of microplastics (MPs) in organic waste streams raises concerns about their impact on anaerobic digestion (AD). This study examined the effect of polypropylene MPs (PP-MPs) on methane production during AD of food waste for 150 days under batch conditions. PP-MPs were added at 10–300 mg g -1 total solids (TS), covering reported MP levels in food waste and food packaging materials and extending to worst-case scenarios. Methane yields ranged from 310.2 to 324.4 mL CH 4 g -1 volatile solids (VS) across treatments versus 334.3 ± 5.2 mL CH 4 g -1 VS in the control, with no significant differences ( p = 0.634). Kinetic modeling confirmed no consistent inhibitory trends. FTIR and SEM analyses indicated minor surface oxidation and cracking on PP-MPs, while the polymer backbone remained intact, suggesting only superficial aging. These results provide critical assurance for waste-to-energy facilities processing plastic-contaminated organic waste streams. Although PP-MPs do not impair AD performance, their persistence and potential fragmentation pose environmental risks. These findings provide critical insight into the resilience of AD systems and emphasize the need for strategies to mitigate secondary MP formation in biogas production from contaminated waste streams.
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Effect of Microplastics on Anaerobic Digestion Process with Rapidly Degradable Organic Matter.
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A controlled batch study found that polystyrene, PET, and HDPE microplastics moderately inhibit methane production in anaerobic digesters, with HDPE causing up to a 24% reduction, while the microbial community showed overall resilience with HDPE being the notable exception. This is significant for microplastic pollution research because anaerobic digestion is a primary wastewater sludge treatment pathway, and microplastic interference threatens both energy recovery efficiency and the fate of plastics in biosolids applied to agricultural land.
Effect of Microplastics on Anaerobic Digestion Process with Rapidly Degradable Organic Matter.
AI summary Read the abstract
A controlled batch study found that polystyrene, PET, and HDPE microplastics moderately inhibit methane production in anaerobic digesters, with HDPE causing up to a 24% reduction, while the microbial community showed overall resilience with HDPE being the notable exception. This is significant for microplastic pollution research because anaerobic digestion is a primary wastewater sludge treatment pathway, and microplastic interference threatens both energy recovery efficiency and the fate of plastics in biosolids applied to agricultural land.
Effects of Micro(nano)plastics on Anaerobic Digestion and Their Influencing Mechanisms
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This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics from organic waste streams affect anaerobic digestion (AD) performance, covering impacts on methane production, microbial community structure, and enzyme activity. It identifies plastic polymer type and concentration as key variables determining whether MPs stimulate or inhibit digestion processes.
Systematic study of microplastics on methane production in anaerobic digestion: Performance and microbial response
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Microplastics are increasingly found in wastewater treatment systems, and this study systematically examined how different types, concentrations, and sizes of microplastics affect the anaerobic digestion process used to break down sewage sludge and generate biogas. Polyethylene microplastics were found to inhibit methane production, with finer particles and higher concentrations causing greater disruption to the microbial communities driving digestion. The findings matter because microplastics in sewage sludge can impair the treatment process and also end up spread on agricultural land when sludge is used as fertilizer.
Effects of Microplastics Type, Particle Size, and Concentration on the Anaerobic Digestion of Food Waste and Residual Sludge: Methane Yield, Organic Matter Degradation
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Researchers co-digested food waste and residual sludge in the presence of polyethylene, polypropylene, and PVC microplastics of varying sizes and concentrations, finding that smaller particles and higher doses increasingly inhibited methane production — with 3 µm PVC at 100 particles/g-TS cutting cumulative methane by 54.6% and halting output entirely by day 17.
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