Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Investigating the Potential of Coagulants to Improve Microplastics Removal in Wastewater and Tap Water

Researchers found that adding coagulants (FeCl3 or Al2(SO4)3) to wastewater and tap water improved microplastic removal, with aluminum sulfate achieving 43% and 62% removal efficiencies respectively, though the high concentrations required suggest that combining coagulants with organic polyelectrolytes could improve practicality.

2025 Microplastics
Article Tier 2

Influence of Different Coagulants on Microplastics Removal

Researchers compared the effectiveness of different coagulants—including aluminum sulfate, ferric chloride, and polyaluminum chloride—for removing microplastics from water, finding significant performance differences dependent on plastic particle size, charge, and coagulant dose.

2025 The Knowledge Bank (The Ohio State University)
Article Tier 2

Enhanced removal of polyethylene terephthalate microplastics through polyaluminum chloride coagulation with three typical coagulant aids

Researchers tested three coagulant aids — polyacrylamide (PAM), sodium alginate, and activated silicic acid — combined with polyaluminum chloride to remove PET microplastics from drinking water, finding that PAM at high dosage achieved up to 91.45% removal efficiency.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 153 citations
Article Tier 2

Size and Shape Distribution of Microplastics in PET Recycled Wastewater and Their Removal Behavior during the Coagulation–Flocculation Process

Researchers investigated the size and shape distribution of microplastics in wastewater from a PET recycling facility and evaluated removal efficiency through coagulation-flocculation, finding that fragment-shaped and medium-sized particles were most abundant and most effectively removed. The study demonstrates that coagulation-flocculation is a strong candidate for controlling microplastic release from plastic recycling facilities.

2025 Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Management (JES-TM)
Article Tier 2

Research on Effect of Microplastics Removal through Combination of Coagulation and Sand Filtration

Researchers tested three coagulants — ferric chloride (FeCl3), polyferric sulfate (PFS), and polyaluminum chloride (PAC) — for microplastic removal from secondary wastewater effluent, finding that 40 mg/L PFS achieved the highest coagulation removal rate of 61%. A combined PFS plus sand filtration process removed 91% of microplastics, 82% of suspended solids, and 85% of total phosphorus at a treatment cost of approximately 0.0594 Yuan per tonne of wastewater.

2024 E3S Web of Conferences 1 citations
Article Tier 2

The influence of coagulation process conditions on theefficiency of microplastic removal in water treatment

Researchers investigated how coagulation process conditions — including coagulant type, pH, and microsand addition — affect the removal of polyethylene, PVC, and textile microfibers from river water, municipal wastewater, laundry effluent, and synthetic matrices. Ferric chloride and polyaluminum chloride both achieved substantial removal, with performance varying significantly by water matrix and microplastic type.

2025 National Repository of Dissertations in Serbia
Article Tier 2

Microplastics removal from natural surface water by coagulation process

Researchers compared the effectiveness of ferrous and aluminum sulfate coagulants for removing microplastics from natural surface water, finding that both successfully removed polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride particles. Ferrous sulfate showed slightly higher removal efficiency, and the addition of coagulant aids further improved results. The study demonstrates that conventional coagulation processes already used in drinking water treatment can meaningfully reduce microplastic contamination.

2024 Desalination and Water Treatment 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and nanoplastics in water: Improving removal in wastewater treatment plants with alternative coagulants

Laboratory tests showed that conventional aluminum sulfate (alum) coagulant becomes much less effective at removing micro- and nanoplastics from water at pH above 7.8—a common condition in municipal wastewater—but switching to aluminum chlorohydrate largely restores removal efficiency. This matters because wastewater treatment plants are a critical barrier preventing microplastics from entering rivers and oceans, and many currently use alum. The study gives water utilities a practical, drop-in solution to significantly improve microplastic capture under challenging water chemistry.

2026 The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering
Systematic Review Tier 1

Removal of most frequent microplastic types and sizes in secondary effluent using Al2(SO4)3: choosing variables by a fuzzy Delphi method

This study found that aluminum sulfate coagulation removed 72-99% of common microplastic types from secondary wastewater effluent, with removal efficiency varying by polymer type and particle size. Polyamide and polystyrene particles were removed most effectively, while polyethylene was more resistant, demonstrating that optimized coagulation can significantly reduce microplastic discharge from wastewater treatment plants.

2023 Scientific Reports 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Removal of Microplastics from Wastewater Treatment Plants by Coagulation

Researchers tested coagulation-based methods for removing microplastics from wastewater using polyaluminum chloride and polyferric sulfate, with and without polyacrylamide additives. The best results came from combining polyaluminum chloride with cationic polyacrylamide, which achieved 87.5% removal of polystyrene microplastics. The study suggests that cationic polyacrylamide works especially well because of electrostatic interactions with negatively charged microplastic particles.

2026 Sustainability
Article Tier 2

Removal of microplastics from secondary wastewater treatment plant effluent by coagulation/flocculation with iron, aluminum and polyamine-based chemicals

Researchers tested iron, aluminum, and polyamine-based coagulants for removing small microplastics (<10 µm) from secondary wastewater treatment plant effluent, finding that coagulation-flocculation can remove a substantial fraction but that efficiency varies by chemical and particle size.

2020 Water Research 340 citations
Article Tier 2

Chemical Coagulation Applied for the Removal of Polyethylene and Expanded Polystyrene Microplastics

Researchers evaluated the use of aluminum sulfate-based coagulation and flocculation processes for removing polyethylene and expanded polystyrene microplastics from water. The study used factorial experimental designs to optimize treatment conditions including coagulant dosage and pH, demonstrating the potential of chemical coagulation as a microplastic removal strategy.

2023 Journal of Ecological Engineering 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Removal of microplastic particles using ferrate (VI) from water

This Croatian study tested ferrate (VI), a multi-functional water treatment reagent, for removing PET microplastics from water using coagulation. Results showed partial removal effectiveness, with the authors noting further work is needed across a wider pH range and to quantify any nanoplastic fraction released during treatment.

2023 Repository of Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology University of Zagreb
Article Tier 2

Elimination of a Mixture of Microplastics Using Conventional and Detergent-Assisted Coagulation

Researchers tested coagulation as a method to remove microplastics from tap water, evaluating how microplastic type (PE and PVC), water pH, coagulant dose, and microplastic concentration affect removal efficiency, and finding that detergent-assisted coagulation improves performance.

2023 Materials 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and nanoplastics in water: Improving removal in wastewater treatment plants with alternative coagulants

Conventional water treatment plants that use alum as a coagulant become significantly less effective at removing microplastics and nanoplastics as water pH rises above 7.8, which is common in municipal wastewater. Switching to alternative coagulants — particularly aluminum chlorohydrate and cationic polyamine blends — maintained high removal rates at elevated pH, with nanoplastic removal reaching 71% and microfiber removal staying above 95%. The findings offer practical guidance for upgrading treatment plants to better capture plastic particles before they are discharged into waterways.

2024 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of coagulation on microfibers in laundry wastewater

Researchers tested ferric chloride and polyaluminium chloride (PACl) as coagulants for removing synthetic microfibers from laundry wastewater, finding that surfactants in detergent reduced removal efficiency from up to 96% to 0-37%. Adding PACl restored removal to above 90%, with optimal PACl concentrations dependent on detergent concentration, suggesting coagulant addition is critical for effective microfiber removal from laundry effluent.

2022 Environmental Research 50 citations
Article Tier 2

Enhanced Removal of Polystyrene Microplastics from Water Through Coagulation Using Polyaluminum Ferric Chloride with Coagulant Aids

Researchers tested enhanced coagulation using modified coagulants to remove polystyrene microplastics from water, finding that surface-modified coagulants achieved significantly higher removal efficiencies than conventional alum. Removal reached over 90% under optimized conditions, demonstrating a practical upgrade pathway for conventional water treatment plants to reduce microplastic discharge.

2024 Environmental Engineering Science 7 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastics removal from aquatic environment by coagulation: Selecting the best coagulant based on variables determined from a systematic review

This systematic review and experimental study identifies the most effective methods for removing microplastics from water using coagulation, a common water treatment technique. Researchers tested different coagulants on three types of microplastics and found that aluminum-based coagulants were most effective. These findings could help water treatment plants better remove microplastics from the water supply before it reaches our taps.

2023 Heliyon 40 citations
Article Tier 2

Enhancing microplastic removal from natural water using coagulant aids

Researchers tested different chemical treatments for removing microplastic beads from natural water and found that polyaluminium chloride combined with polyacrylamide achieved over 95% removal across six common plastic types. The treatment worked on particles ranging from 10 to 1,000 micrometers, and natural organic matter in the water actually improved performance. The findings suggest that optimizing standard water treatment processes could be a practical way to reduce microplastic contamination in drinking water sources.

2024 Chemosphere 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Optimization of polypropylene microplastics removal using conventional coagulants in drinking water treatment plants via response surface methodology

Researchers optimized coagulation of polypropylene microplastics from drinking water using polyaluminium chloride as coagulant and response surface methodology to identify optimal conditions. The maximum predicted removal rate under optimal conditions (pH 9, 200 ppm PACl, 21 ppm polyacrylamide) was approximately 19.7% for the smallest microplastic size tested, indicating that conventional coagulation alone has limited effectiveness for polypropylene microplastics.

2022 Journal of Environmental Health Science and Engineering 19 citations