Papers

61,005 results
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Review Tier 2

A review of microplastic removal from water and wastewater by membrane technologies

This review examines how membrane filtration technologies can remove microplastics from drinking water and wastewater. Researchers found that advanced membranes like nanofiltration, reverse osmosis, and membrane bioreactors are among the most effective methods for capturing microplastic particles that conventional treatment plants miss. The study compares membrane approaches with other removal methods and discusses the challenges of membrane fouling caused by microplastic accumulation.

2023 Water Science & Technology 146 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in marine environment: a review on sources, classification, and potential remediation by membrane technology

This review covers microplastic sources, classification, distribution in marine environments, and potential remediation technologies with emphasis on membrane-based filtration methods. It highlights the persistence and ubiquity of microplastics in aquatic habitats and the need for both better removal technologies and upstream plastic use reduction.

2020 Environmental Science Water Research & Technology 183 citations
Article Tier 2

Environmental remediation and the efficacy of ceramic membranes in wastewater treatment—a review

Researchers reviewed ceramic membranes — filters made from minerals like alumina and zirconia — as a durable, chemical-resistant alternative to standard plastic-based membranes for cleaning industrial wastewater. While effective, reducing manufacturing costs and scaling up production remain key challenges before widespread adoption.

2024 Emergent Materials 44 citations
Article Tier 2

Filtration Solutions for Microplastic Mitigation: Cutting-Edge Filtration Technologies and Membrane Innovations for Environmental Protection

This review focused on membrane-based filtration technologies—including microfiltration, ultrafiltration, and nanofiltration—as strategies for removing microplastics from water. The authors evaluated removal efficiencies across membrane types and concluded that while membranes show strong performance, fouling and operational costs remain barriers to large-scale deployment.

2025 Applied Sciences
Article Tier 2

The Potential Role of Membrane Technology in the Removal of Microplastics from Wastewater

This review examines membrane filtration as a technology for removing microplastics from wastewater, finding it promising but limited by issues of fouling and chemical instability. Improving membrane technology could significantly reduce the amount of microplastics discharged into waterways from treatment plants.

2021 Journal of Applied Membrane Science & Technology 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Membrane processes as a highly effective and eco-friendly technology for treating municipal water contaminated with micro- and nanoplastics.

Researchers evaluated membrane filtration as an environmentally friendly technology for removing micro- and nanoplastics from water, testing different membrane types and pore sizes. Membrane processes showed high removal efficiency for microplastics and outperformed conventional water treatment steps for the smallest particles.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Technological Advances in Ceramic Membranes for Water Treatment

This review examines technological innovations in ceramic membrane materials and fabrication for water treatment, covering Al2O3, TiO2, SiO2, and ZrO2-based membranes and their surface modifications. It finds ceramic membranes effective at removing heavy metals, pathogens, and other contaminants including microplastics, but notes that high acquisition, maintenance, and operating costs limit broader adoption.

2025 IntechOpen eBooks 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Elimination of microplastics from the aquatic milieu: A dream to achieve

Researchers reviewed current methods for eliminating microplastics from aquatic environments, including membrane technologies such as ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, and microfiltration. The study assessed how microplastics interact with toxic organic chemicals, antibiotics, and heavy metals in water, compounding their environmental impact. The review suggests that while various removal technologies show promise, achieving complete elimination of microplastics from water remains a significant challenge.

2022 Chemosphere 41 citations
Article Tier 2

Are Water Filters Effective Against Microplastics?

Comparing microplastic concentrations in water from purifiers, tap water, and ceramic filters found ceramic filters had significantly lower MP levels (0.49 MPs/L) compared to purifiers (1.41 MPs/L) and tap water (1.13 MPs/L) across 9,262 identified microplastic items.

2024 Water 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Treatment technologies for the removal of micro plastics from aqueous medium

Researchers reviewed treatment technologies for removing microplastics from water, finding that while multiple methods including filtration, membrane processes, and coagulation show promise, their effectiveness depends on microplastic size, type, and concentration.

2022 AIP conference proceedings 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Evaluation of membranes performance for microplastic removal in a simple and low-cost filtration system

Researchers tested three types of filter membranes (polycarbonate, cellulose acetate, and PTFE) for removing microplastics from water in a simple low-cost household system, finding all achieved over 94% removal by mass but that some plastic particles broke into smaller pieces during filtration. Cellulose acetate membranes performed best for long-term home use, offering a practical approach for reducing microplastic exposure from tap water.

2020 Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering 142 citations
Article Tier 2

Severity of waterborne diseases in developing countries and the effectiveness of ceramic filters for improving water quality

This review evaluates strategies used in developing countries to combat waterborne diseases, with a focus on ceramic water filters as an affordable purification method. Ceramic filters can effectively remove bacteria, viruses, and chemical contaminants including microplastics from drinking water. With billions of people lacking access to clean water, low-cost filtration methods that also remove emerging contaminants like microplastics are critical for protecting public health.

2023 Bulletin of the National Research Centre/Bulletin of the National Research Center 115 citations
Article Tier 2

Environmental prevalence, fate, impacts, and mitigation of microplastics—a critical review on present understanding and future research scope

This critical review evaluates the environmental prevalence, fate, impacts, and mitigation of microplastics across aquatic, atmospheric, and terrestrial environments as well as human tissues. It discusses membrane-based and other treatment technologies for microplastic removal, identifying persistent monitoring and standardization challenges.

2020 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 57 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in different water samples (seawater, freshwater, and wastewater): Removal efficiency of membrane treatment processes

Researchers studied microplastic distribution across seawater, freshwater, and wastewater sources in France and evaluated the removal efficiency of membrane treatment processes. The study found that wastewater contained the highest concentrations of microplastics, and that membrane-based treatment technologies showed strong potential for removing microplastic particles from different water sources.

2023 Water Research 119 citations
Article Tier 2

Filtration Solutions for Microplastic Mitigation: Cutting-Edge Filtration Technologies and Membrane Innovations for Environmental Protection

This review covers advances in filtration technologies and membrane innovations for removing microplastics from the environment, examining the performance, limitations, and scalability of approaches including membrane filtration, coagulation, and combined treatment processes.

2025 Preprints.org
Article Tier 2

Fabrication of low-cost ceramic microfiltration membranes with controllable pore size distribution using nanometer attapulgite for gravity-driven filtration of microplastic-contaminated roofing rainwater

Low-cost ceramic microfiltration membranes were fabricated for water purification, demonstrating effective removal of suspended particles including microplastics from contaminated water. Affordable membrane materials are important for making microplastic removal accessible in low-resource settings.

2025 Journal of Environmental Management 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Remediation of Micro- and Nanoplastics by Membrane Technologies

This review examined how membrane filtration technologies can remove micro- and nanoplastics from water and wastewater, since conventional treatment plants cannot fully eliminate these particles. Researchers found that techniques like ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, reverse osmosis, and membrane bioreactors are highly effective at capturing microplastics, though each has trade-offs related to cost, fouling, and energy use. The study also raises the concern that polymeric membranes themselves could potentially release plastic particles during the filtration process.

2025 Membranes 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Reuse of Water Contaminated by Microplastics, the Effectiveness of Filtration Processes: A Review

This review evaluates filtration technologies for removing microplastics from water, finding that while treatment plants reduce microplastic counts effectively, large discharge volumes still release substantial quantities into the environment.

2022 Energies 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent approaches and advanced wastewater treatment technologies for mitigating emerging microplastics contamination – A critical review

This review critically assessed advanced wastewater treatment technologies for removing microplastics, noting that conventional treatment plants act as both barriers and point sources for microplastic release into the environment. The study suggests that advanced treatment approaches such as membrane filtration and advanced oxidation processes show promise for improving microplastic removal efficiency from wastewater.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 243 citations
Article Tier 2

Reuse of Water in Laundry Applications with Micro- and Ultrafiltration Ceramic Membrane

Microfiltration and ultrafiltration ceramic membranes were compared for the treatment of laundry wastewater containing microfibers, with both membranes achieving high microfiber removal while the ultrafiltration membrane provided better water quality for reuse. The study supports ceramic membrane filtration as an effective approach to capturing textile microplastics at the point of washing.

2022 Membranes 42 citations
Article Tier 2

Filtration Methods for Microplastic Removal in Wastewater Streams — A Review

This review surveys filtration, membrane, coagulation, and biological methods for removing microplastics from wastewater, concluding that membrane bioreactors and dynamic membranes are among the most effective current technologies. The paper provides a useful comparative overview for engineers and policymakers seeking cost-effective solutions to prevent microplastics from passing through treatment plants into waterways.

2023 International Journal of High Speed Electronics and Systems 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Membrane processes as a highly effective and eco-friendly technology for treating municipal water contaminated with micro- and nanoplastics.

This review assessed membrane filtration processes as a method for removing micro- and nanoplastics from water, evaluating their effectiveness and environmental footprint compared to conventional treatment approaches. Membrane technologies showed high removal efficiency for both micro- and nanoplastics and were identified as among the most promising eco-friendly treatment options.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

An evaluation of microplastics fate in the wastewater treatment plants: frequency and removal of microplastics by microfiltration membrane

This study assessed microplastic removal efficiency at a wastewater treatment plant in Iran and tested microfiltration membrane performance, finding that the membrane significantly improved microplastic removal beyond conventional treatment steps.

2021 Water Practice & Technology 56 citations
Article Tier 2

Application of Hybrid Ceramic Membranes for Microplastic and Nanoplastic Separation and Improved Wastewater Treatment

This study evaluated hybrid ceramic membrane filtration combined with anaerobic digestion for removing micro- and nanoplastics from wastewater. The system achieved high removal efficiencies and showed that membrane filtration is a promising technology for reducing plastic particles before effluent discharge.

2025 Microplastics