Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Biopolymers in Aerobic Granular Sludge—Their Role in Wastewater Treatment and Possibilities of Re-Use in Line with Circular Economy

This review examines the composition and role of extracellular polymeric substances in aerobic granular sludge, finding that the high alginate content of granules not only improves wastewater treatment performance but also presents opportunities for polymer recovery aligned with circular economy principles.

2021 Energies 27 citations
Article Tier 2

The presence of microplastics in waste sludges

This Croatian review examines the presence of microplastics in sewage sludge from wastewater treatment plants and their pathways into terrestrial and aquatic environments. The authors discuss alternative sustainable sludge management approaches aligned with circular economy principles.

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

Wastewater and sludge valorisation: a novel approach for treatment and resource recovery to achieve circular economy concept

This review highlights novel approaches for wastewater and sludge valorisation within a circular economy framework, focusing on recovering value-added products including biopolymers, nutrients, and energy to achieve sustainable development goals and combat water scarcity.

2023 Frontiers in Chemical Engineering 48 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Wastewater Sludges : Extraction, Occurrence and Implications for the Circular Economy

This thesis examines microplastic extraction methods, occurrence levels, and circular economy implications for wastewater treatment sludges, including both municipal sewage sludge and industrial sludges from pulp and paper processing.

2025 Trepo - Institutional Repository of Tampere University
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on the properties of different types of sewage sludge and strategies to overcome the inhibition: A review

This review examined how microplastics trapped in sewage sludge during wastewater treatment affect sludge properties, microbial communities, and treatment efficiency, while discussing strategies to overcome microplastic-induced inhibition of sludge processing.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 44 citations
Article Tier 2

A systematic overview of current advancements for chemical, material, and energy production using sewage sludge for industrial ecology and sustainability transition

This review examines current advances in recovering chemicals, materials, and energy from sewage sludge, identifying opportunities to convert this waste stream into valuable products while addressing microplastic and contaminant concerns that complicate sludge reuse.

2024 Environmental Sustainability 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined application of analytical techniques for microplastic determination to achieve comprehensive results for sewage sludge samples

Researchers combined multiple analytical techniques for comprehensive microplastic determination in sewage sludge samples, addressing the challenge that more than 90% of microplastics entering wastewater treatment plants are retained in sludge and require robust multi-method characterization.

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

Optimization of a method used for extracting microplastics from an organic matter-rich matrix and isolated particles assessment

Researchers optimized a method for extracting microplastics from sewage sludge — a challenging organic-rich matrix — by combining density separation and chemical digestion steps, improving recovery rates and enabling more accurate characterization of sludge-associated microplastics.

2025 Chemosphere 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in sewage sludge: Distribution, toxicity, identification methods, and engineered technologies

This review examines how microplastics accumulate in sewage sludge from wastewater treatment plants, which then becomes a major pathway for spreading these particles into the environment. Researchers found that sludge can contain extremely high concentrations of microplastics, ranging from thousands to hundreds of thousands of particles per kilogram. The study evaluates current detection methods and emerging technologies for removing microplastics from sludge before it is applied to agricultural land or disposed of.

2022 Chemosphere 106 citations
Article Tier 2

Circular Economy in Wastewater Treatment Plant—Water, Energy and Raw Materials Recovery

This review proposes a conceptual framework for future wastewater treatment plants operating as resource recovery facilities within a circular economy, focusing on technologies for recovering water, energy, and raw materials including nutrients and biopolymers.

2023 Energies 51 citations
Article Tier 2

Removal of microplastics from wastewater: available techniques and way forward

This review surveys available techniques for removing microplastics from wastewater within a circular economy framework, discussing innovative treatment technologies, integrated risk-based approaches, and regulatory and economic guidelines needed to advance water resource recovery facilities beyond conventional pollutant removal.

2023 IWA Publishing eBooks 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined application of analytical techniques for microplastic determination to achieve comprehensive results for sewage sludge samples

Researchers applied a combination of complementary analytical techniques to achieve comprehensive microplastic characterization in sewage sludge samples, addressing the limitations of using single methods for such complex matrices. They found that more than 90% of microplastics entering wastewater treatment plants are retained in the resulting sludge, and that combining analytical approaches improved detection across size ranges and polymer types.

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

Hydrothermal liquefaction of sewage sludge for circular bioeconomy: Focus on lignocellulose wastes, microplastics, and pharmaceuticals

Researchers reviewed how a high-heat water process called hydrothermal liquefaction can convert sewage sludge — which is loaded with microplastics, pharmaceutical residues, and plant waste — into usable biofuel while neutralizing many of these contaminants. This approach offers a promising way to tackle the growing problem of sewage sludge disposal while recovering energy, though challenges remain in scaling it up economically.

2025 Journal of Bioresources and Bioproducts 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Contemporary Drift in Emerging Micro(nano)plastics Removal and Upcycling Technologies from Municipal Wastewater Sludge: Strategic Innovations and Prospects

This review evaluates both conventional and advanced methods for removing microplastics from sewage sludge before it is applied to farmland as fertilizer. Current treatment processes like anaerobic digestion and composting reduce but do not eliminate microplastics, and some methods can actually fragment larger plastics into more numerous smaller pieces. The authors identify emerging technologies and upcycling strategies that could better address this pathway of microplastic contamination in agricultural soils.

2023 Current Pollution Reports 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Co-Valorisation Energy Potential of Wastewater Treatment Sludge and Agroforestry Waste

Not relevant to microplastics — this study characterizes the energy potential of various biomass feedstocks including sewage sludge, forestry waste, swine manure, cork, and biochar as renewable energy co-valorisation resources, finding substantial variation in calorific values across materials.

2024 Environments 3 citations
Review Tier 2

Microplastics in Sewage Sludge: A review

This review examines the presence and fate of microplastics in sewage sludge from municipal wastewater treatment plants, a topic that has received less attention than microplastics in the water treatment line. The study highlights that agricultural application of sewage sludge is a primary source of microplastic contamination in soils, and provides a comprehensive overview of detection methods, concentrations, and the environmental implications of sludge-borne microplastics.

2023 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 64 citations
Article Tier 2

Optimised reduction of total solids and organic matter of sewage sludge matrix for an improved extraction of microplastics

Researchers optimized chemical digestion protocols for extracting microplastics from sewage sludge, finding that maximizing reduction of total solids and organic carbon content significantly improved the reliability and efficiency of subsequent density-based microplastic separation.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Biosolids-derived fertilisers: A review of challenges and opportunities

This review examines the use of treated sewage sludge (biosolids) as farm fertilizer and the concern that it introduces microplastics and persistent organic contaminants into agricultural soil. While biosolids provide valuable nutrients for crops, the microplastics they contain can accumulate in soil over time and potentially enter the food chain. The authors discuss thermal processing and nutrient recovery technologies that could help remove contaminants while preserving the fertilizer value of biosolids.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 104 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic removal from wastewater through biopolymer and nanocellulose-based green technologies

Biopolymer-based coagulation and flocculation agents were shown to effectively remove microplastics from wastewater, offering a more sustainable alternative to synthetic chemical flocculants. The approach supports eco-friendly microplastic treatment that avoids adding further chemical pollutants to effluents.

2025 RSC Sustainability 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Variation in microplastic concentration, characteristics and distribution in sewage sludge & biosolids around the world

This review synthesizes global data on microplastic concentrations, characteristics, and distribution in sewage sludge and biosolids, drawing on studies showing wastewater treatment works remove 57-99% of incoming microplastics, concentrating them in sludge byproducts. The review highlights the significance of this concentration pathway and what happens to these microplastics when sludge is applied to land or otherwise managed.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

The fate of microplastic in sludge management systems

This review assessed the fate of microplastics in sewage sludge management systems, finding that standard stabilization processes including anaerobic digestion and composting do not substantially reduce MP concentrations. Land application of MP-rich sludge was identified as a major pathway for plastic particles entering agricultural soils, with the review calling for alternative sludge disposal strategies aligned with circular economy principles.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 62 citations
Article Tier 2

A method for the characterisation of microplastics in sludge

Researchers developed a method for detecting and characterizing microplastics in sewage sludge, which concentrates the majority of microplastics removed during wastewater treatment. This method is important because sludge is widely spread on agricultural land, making it a key pathway for microplastics entering soils.

2019 MethodsX 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of micro-nanoplastics on biochemical phases of anaerobic digestion in sewage sludge treatment: mechanistic insights and future prospects

Micro- and nanoplastics were found to disrupt the biochemical phases of anaerobic digestion, affecting the efficiency of the biological process used to treat organic waste. Understanding these impacts is important because anaerobic digestion is a common wastewater and sludge treatment method that may both receive and process microplastic-contaminated materials.

2025 International Journal of Theoretical and Applied Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Separation of Microplastic Particles from Sewage Sludge Extracts Using Magnetic Seeded Filtration

Researchers applied magnetic seeded filtration to separate microplastic particles from sewage sludge extracts, addressing the challenge that residual cellulose from toilet paper co-purifies with MPs during conventional digestion and interferes with identification. The method selectively removed cellulose while preserving microplastics, improving analytical accuracy for monitoring MPs in sludge.

2022 Water Research X 40 citations