Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

The destiny of microplastics in one typical petrochemical wastewater treatment plant

This study tracked the fate of microplastics through a petrochemical wastewater treatment plant, finding that while most microplastics were removed during treatment, the plant still released measurable quantities into receiving waters, identifying the petrochemical industry as a point source of microplastic emissions.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Petrochemical industry as a source for microplastics; abundance and characteristics of pollution in soil, sewage, and bay

This is the first study to track microplastic pollution from a petrochemical industrial site through its soil, wastewater, and into the nearby bay. Soil near the production facilities contained up to 4,620 microplastic particles per kilogram, and significant amounts passed through wastewater treatment into open waters. The research shows that plastic manufacturing facilities are a direct and substantial source of microplastic contamination in the environment.

2024 Results in Engineering 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Treated wastewater disturb the distributions of microplastics in their receiving watersheds

Researchers sampled surface water and sediment upstream and downstream of a petrochemical and a municipal wastewater treatment plant, finding that treated effluent consistently elevated microplastic abundances downstream, with petrochemical effluent increasing microplastic diversity and municipal effluent increasing fiber and narrow particle fractions.

2025 Journal of Environmental Management
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in industrial wastewater treatment plant: Quantification, identification and ecological risk assessment

Researchers quantified microplastics in an industrial wastewater treatment plant in Thailand across wet and dry seasons, finding the highest concentrations after the aeration treatment stage. The study demonstrates that industrial wastewater treatment is an important but undermonitored pathway for microplastics entering aquatic environments.

2020
Article Tier 2

Extraction and Characterization of Microplastics from Portuguese Industrial Effluents

Researchers characterized microplastic contamination in effluents from multiple Portuguese industrial sectors, finding that various well-established industries contribute to microplastic release into wastewater and pose risks of contaminating aquifers.

2022 Polymers 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence, identification, and discharge of microplastics from effluent and sludge of the largest WWTP in Iran—South of Tehran

Researchers quantified microplastics in Iran's largest wastewater treatment plant and found significant concentrations in both effluent and sludge, identifying the facility as a pathway for microplastic release into the environment despite treatment processes.

2022 Water Environment Research 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution is widely detected in US municipal wastewater treatment plant effluent

Researchers conducted a wide survey of US municipal wastewater treatment plants and found microplastics widely present in effluent, confirming that conventional treatment does not fully remove microplastics and that treatment plants are ongoing sources of environmental contamination.

2016 Environmental Pollution 1124 citations
Article Tier 2

Are wastewater treatment plants as the source of microplastics in surface water and soil?

Researchers investigated the relationship between microplastic contamination in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and in nearby surface water and soil, finding that while WWTPs effectively remove most microplastics, they still contribute to surrounding environmental contamination.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Abundance and Distribution in a Wastewater Treatment Plant in Bangladesh

Researchers investigated the abundance and distribution of microplastics in the Pagla Sewage Water Treatment Plant in Bangladesh, examining influent, effluent, and sludge to assess the facility as a potential source of microplastic pollution across multiple environmental compartments. The study found microplastics present throughout the treatment process, highlighting wastewater treatment plants as under-studied vectors of microplastic dispersal.

2022 ISEE Conference Abstracts 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Quantification of microplastics in wastewater systems of German industrial parks and their wastewater treatment plants

Researchers provided one of the first assessments of microplastic occurrence in German industrial park wastewater systems, quantifying microplastic distribution across production plant effluents and treatment plant stages to understand industrial contributions to aquatic pollution.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 49 citations
Review Tier 2

A global review of microplastics in wastewater treatment plants: Understanding their occurrence, fate and impact

A global review of 121 wastewater treatment plants found that microplastics are consistently present in both influent and effluent, with WWTPs acting as major conduits delivering plastics into aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. While removal efficiencies varied widely, the sludge produced by these plants represents a concentrated secondary pathway for microplastic release to land.

2022 Environmental Research 76 citations
Article Tier 2

Transport and fate of microplastic particles in wastewater treatment plants

Researchers tracked microplastic particles through multiple stages of a wastewater treatment plant, finding that particles were concentrated in sludge but that a fraction passed through each treatment stage and remained in the final effluent.

2016 Water Research 1704 citations
Article Tier 2

Wastewater treatment plants act as essential sources of microplastic formation in aquatic environments: A critical review

This review reveals that wastewater treatment plants are significant sources of microplastic formation, as treatment processes fragment and weather larger plastics into secondary microplastics with roughened, oxidized surfaces that are more environmentally reactive.

2022 Water Research 183 citations
Review Tier 2

Wastewater treatment plant effluent as a source of microplastics: review of the fate, chemical interactions and potential risks to aquatic organisms

This review examines wastewater treatment plant effluent as a source of microplastics entering aquatic environments. The study found that even though treatment plants remove most microplastics, the small amounts remaining in effluent may still contribute significantly to environmental contamination, and the chemical interactions between microplastics and other pollutants in wastewater raise additional ecological concerns.

2016 Water Science & Technology 314 citations