Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Exposure to nanoplastic induces cell damage and nitrogen inhibition of activated sludge: Evidence from bacterial individuals and groups

Researchers exposed activated sludge in a wastewater treatment reactor to polystyrene nanoplastics at concentrations up to 10 mg/L over 30 days. They found that nanoplastic exposure caused cell membrane damage, increased oxidative stress, and significantly inhibited nitrogen removal processes. The study suggests that nanoplastic accumulation in wastewater treatment plants could compromise their ability to effectively process nitrogen-containing pollutants.

2022 Environmental Pollution 52 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of polystyrene nanoplastics on the activated sludge process performance and biomass characteristics. A laboratory study with a sequencing batch reactor

Researchers evaluated the effect of 100 nm polystyrene nanoplastics at 2 micrograms per liter on activated sludge performance and microbial community composition in a sequencing batch reactor over an extended laboratory experiment. No significant changes in nitrification or organic matter removal efficiency (96% for both reactors) were observed, but a notable increase in Patescibacteria abundance and stagnation of Nitrotoga growth in the nanoplastic-exposed reactor suggested subtle community-level sensitivity.

2022 Journal of Environmental Management 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene nanoplastics reshape the anaerobic granular sludge for recovering methane from wastewater

Researchers investigated the long-term effects of polystyrene nanoplastics on anaerobic granular sludge used for methane recovery from wastewater over a 120-day continuous test. The study found that while low nanoplastic concentrations had minimal impact, higher concentrations reshaped the microbial community structure and altered sludge performance, raising concerns about nanoplastic effects on wastewater treatment processes.

2020 Water Research 170 citations
Article Tier 2

The effects of microplastics and nanoplastics on nitrogen removal, extracellular polymeric substances and microbial community in sequencing batch reactor

Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics and microplastics impaired nitrogen removal in sequencing batch reactors by reducing denitrification rates, altering extracellular polymeric substances, and shifting microbial community composition in activated sludge.

2023 Bioresource Technology 54 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact and microbial mechanism of continuous nanoplastics exposure on the urban wastewater treatment process

Researchers investigated the effects of continuous nanoplastic exposure on wastewater treatment over 200 days, finding that while total nitrogen removal was not significantly inhibited, nanoplastics altered microbial community composition and affected nitrification and denitrification processes.

2022 Water Research 37 citations
Article Tier 2

Response of aerobic granular sludge under acute inhibition by polystyrene microplastics: Activity, aggregation performance, and microbial analysis

Researchers investigated how different concentrations of polystyrene microplastics affect the performance of aerobic granular sludge used in wastewater treatment. The study found that increasing microplastic concentrations inhibited nitrogen removal rates and disrupted the microbial community structure within the sludge. Evidence indicates that microplastic contamination in wastewater can compromise the effectiveness of biological treatment processes.

2024 Environmental Pollution 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene nanoplastics shape microbiome and functional metabolism in anaerobic digestion

Researchers studied how polystyrene nanoplastics and microplastics affect the microbial communities and biochemical processes in anaerobic digestion systems used for waste treatment. They found that nanoplastics had a more disruptive effect than microplastics, significantly altering the composition and metabolic functions of the microbial community. The study suggests that plastic contamination in waste streams could reduce the efficiency of anaerobic digestion, a widely used waste processing technology.

2022 Water Research 88 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics impacts on Thiobacillus denitrificans: Effects of size and dissolved organic matter

Researchers found that 100 nm polystyrene nanoplastics inhibited growth and denitrification ability of Thiobacillus denitrificans more than 350 nm particles, and that dissolved organic matter modulated nanoplastic bioavailability and toxicity in sewage systems.

2023 Environmental Pollution 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Exposure to polystyrene nanoplastic leads to inhibition of anaerobic digestion system

Researchers showed that polystyrene nanoplastics inhibit methane production in sewage sludge digesters in a concentration-dependent manner, reducing methane yield by up to 14% and delaying the process start-up while shifting microbial community composition away from key methane-producing archaea.

2017 The Science of The Total Environment 212 citations
Article Tier 2

Size dependent impacts of a model microplastic on nitrification induced by interaction with nitrifying bacteria

Researchers found that smaller 50 nm polystyrene particles had a greater inhibitory impact on nitrification than larger 500 nm particles, reducing nitrite utilization rates and disrupting nitrogen cycling more severely. The size-dependent effect suggests nanoplastics pose greater risks to aquatic nitrogen processing than microplastics.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 39 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of polystyrene nanoplastics on primary sludge fermentation under acidic and alkaline conditions: Significance of antibiotic resistance genes

Researchers studied how polystyrene nanoplastics affect the fermentation of sewage sludge at different pH levels. They found that low doses stimulated hydrogen gas production while higher concentrations suppressed it, and that nanoplastic exposure promoted the spread of antibiotic resistance genes in the microbial community. The findings raise concerns about nanoplastics in wastewater systems potentially contributing to the broader problem of antibiotic resistance.

2024 Chemosphere 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Long-term exposure to nanoplastics reshapes the microbial interaction network of activated sludge

Researchers found that long-term nanoplastic exposure over 140 days progressively degraded activated sludge treatment performance, reducing nitrogen and phosphorus removal by reshaping microbial interaction networks into smaller, less complex structures.

2022 Environmental Pollution 39 citations
Article Tier 2

Metagenomic analysis reveals the responses of microbial communities and nitrogen metabolic pathways to polystyrene micro(nano)plastics in activated sludge systems

Scientists used genetic analysis to study how polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics disrupt the bacteria that process nitrogen in wastewater treatment systems. At high concentrations, the plastics reduced nitrogen removal efficiency by up to 30% by generating harmful reactive oxygen species that damaged key microbial processes. This is concerning because less effective wastewater treatment means more pollutants, including microplastics themselves, could end up in waterways.

2023 Water Research 135 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of polystyrene nanoplastics on extracellular polymeric substance composition of activated sludge: The role of surface functional groups

Researchers investigated how three types of polystyrene nanoplastics with different surface functional groups affect activated sludge used in wastewater treatment. All three types significantly reduced total protein production in the sludge and caused cellular oxidative stress and membrane damage, with positively charged particles causing the most harm. The findings suggest that nanoplastic contamination in wastewater could impair the biological processes essential for effective sewage treatment.

2021 Environmental Pollution 79 citations
Article Tier 2

Analytical methods for quantifying PS and PVC Nanoplastic attachment to activated sludge Bacteria and their impact on community structure

Researchers developed and evaluated analytical methods for quantifying the attachment of polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride nanoplastics to activated sludge bacteria, while also examining the impact of these nanoplastics on microbial community structure.

2024 NanoImpact
Article Tier 2

[Effect of Differentially Charged Polystyrene Nanoplastics on the Performance of Biological Denitrification in Wastewater Treatment].

This Chinese-language study investigated how positively and negatively charged polystyrene nanoplastics differentially affect the performance of activated sludge in wastewater treatment, finding that surface charge was a key determinant of biological treatment disruption. Positively charged nanoplastics were more toxic to the microbial community.

2024 PubMed
Article Tier 2

Influence of nanoplastic type on the short-cut nitrification-denitrification in a sequencing batch reactor: Elucidating the metabolic relationship of nitrogen, extracellular polymeric substances, and oxidative stress

Researchers compared the effects of biodegradable (PBAT) and non-biodegradable (polyethylene) nanoplastics on nitrogen-removing bacteria in a wastewater reactor, finding that both types disrupted nitrogen metabolism, extracellular polymer production, and oxidative stress pathways, with non-biodegradable polyethylene causing more severe inhibition of the treatment process.

2026 Journal of Hazardous Materials
Article Tier 2

Responses of performance, antibiotic resistance genes and bacterial communities of partial nitrification system to polyamide microplastics

Short- and long-term exposure of a partial nitrification bioreactor to polyamide microplastics found that while overall treatment performance was minimally affected, chronic exposure elevated ammonia oxidation rates and shifted bacterial community composition, with enrichment of microplastic-colonizing taxa potentially altering nitrogen removal pathways over time.

2021 Bioresource Technology 59 citations
Article Tier 2

Uncovering the toxic effects and adaptive mechanisms of aminated polystyrene nanoplastics on microbes in sludge anaerobic digestion system: Insight from extracellular to intracellular

Researchers investigated how nanoplastics with amino functional groups affect the anaerobic digestion process used to treat sewage sludge. They found that these surface-modified nanoplastics reduced methane production and disrupted the microbial communities responsible for breaking down waste. The study reveals that chemically modified nanoplastics may be more disruptive to wastewater treatment processes than unmodified particles.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of exposure to polyether sulfone microplastic on the nitrifying process and microbial community structure in aerobic granular sludge

Scientists added polyether sulfone microplastics to aerobic granular sludge bioreactors at different concentrations and found only minor effects on ammonia removal but an increase in total nitrogen removal efficiency of 5.6%, along with shifts in nitrifying microbial community structure.

2020 Bioresource Technology 110 citations