Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Occurrence and Control of Microplastics and Emerging Technological Solutions for Their Removal in Freshwaters: A Comprehensive Review

This review examines the occurrence of microplastics in freshwater ecosystems and evaluates current and emerging technologies for their removal, including advanced filtration, biodegradable plastic alternatives, and plastic-to-fuel conversion. Researchers found that the complete removal of microplastics remains an unsolved challenge, complicated by inconsistent detection methods across studies. The study emphasizes the urgent need for standardized measurement techniques and coordinated global strategies to address freshwater microplastic pollution.

2025 Microplastics 2 citations
Article Tier 2

From pollution to solutions: Insights into the sources, transport and management of plastic debris in pristine and urban rivers

This review examines how river systems receive and transport plastic debris -- including both macroplastics and microplastics -- from land sources to the ocean, synthesizing evidence on pollution sources, fate, and management strategies across pristine and urban rivers.

2023 Environmental Research 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution in marine environments: An in-depth analysis of advanced monitoring techniques, removal technologies, and future challenges

This review provides a comprehensive analysis of microplastic pollution in marine environments, covering sources, ecological impacts, and current monitoring and removal technologies. Researchers examined physical, chemical, and biological methods for microplastic detection and cleanup, including filtration, separation, and hybrid approaches. The study concludes that while progress has been made, significant gaps remain in our ability to effectively monitor and remove microplastics from ocean ecosystems.

2025 Marine Environmental Research 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Emerging Technology and Trends to Remove Micro- and Nanoplastics in Aquatic Media

Scientists reviewed 38 technologies designed to remove tiny plastic particles (called microplastics and nanoplastics) from water sources like rivers, lakes, and oceans. These microscopic plastic pieces can end up in our drinking water and food chain, potentially affecting human health. The researchers found that while many removal technologies exist, most are still being tested and need more development and funding to work on a large scale.

2026
Article Tier 2

Tackling microplastics pollution in global environment through integration of applied technology, policy instruments, and legislation

This review examines the global microplastics pollution problem and evaluates solutions combining technology, policy, and legislation. Current water treatment technologies like membrane bioreactors can remove microplastics, but no single approach is sufficient. The authors call for coordinated international action combining better detection methods, cleanup technologies, and stronger regulations to address plastic pollution in both water and land environments.

2023 Journal of Environmental Management 60 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in aquatic environments: a review of recent advances

This review synthesizes recent advances in understanding microplastic contamination in aquatic environments, covering sources, distribution, and physical, chemical, and biological removal methods, and highlighting that no standardized cost-effective removal solution currently exists. The review emphasizes that microplastics cycle through natural and engineered systems, requiring whole-system approaches to avoid unintended recontamination.

2023 Journal of Environmental Engineering and Science 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Pollution to Solution: Understanding and Addressing Microplastic Contamination in the Environment

This review synthesizes current knowledge on how microplastics and nanoplastics are distributed across freshwater and marine environments, how they interact with and are taken up by aquatic organisms, and what removal technologies show the most promise. It covers the full lifecycle from macroplastic fragmentation to nano-scale particles, and surveys physical, chemical, and biological treatment methods. The review provides a useful overview for researchers and environmental managers looking to understand the scope of the microplastic problem and identify where interventions are most needed.

2026 Environmental Quality Management
Article Tier 2

Research Progress of Microplastics Removal Technology in Water Environment

This review examined recent advances in microplastic removal technologies for water environments, addressing the significant risks posed by MPs' widespread origins, inadequate control, and resistance to degradation. Various treatment technologies were assessed for their efficiency in eliminating microplastic pollution from water systems.

2024 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Addressing the microplastic crisis: A multifaceted approach to removal and regulation

Researchers reviewed the growing crisis of microplastic pollution and concluded that no single solution is sufficient — effective action requires combining better wastewater treatment, biodegradable plastic alternatives, stricter regulations, public education, and new detection technologies. They identified major knowledge gaps in understanding the full health and ecological impacts, underscoring the need for global cooperation.

2024 Environmental Advances 99 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Pollution in Aquatic Ecosystems: Challenges and Perspectives

A comprehensive review covered the challenges and future directions for addressing microplastic pollution in aquatic ecosystems, synthesizing knowledge on sources, fate, ecological impacts, and removal strategies. The paper provides a roadmap for research and policy priorities to reduce aquatic microplastic contamination.

2025 Environments 1 citations
Article Tier 2

A comprehensive assessment of plastic remediation technologies

Researchers systematically catalogued 124 existing plastic cleanup technologies, finding that most are designed for inland waterways like rivers and canals, with a surge of new designs published in recent years. Despite promising advances, significant challenges remain in scaling these technologies for real-world use, especially in ports and complex water systems.

2023 Environment International 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in water resources: Global pollution circle, possible technological solutions, legislations, and future horizon

This review summarizes the global scope of microplastic contamination in water and sediment, finding levels that vary enormously -- from near zero to thousands of particles per sample. Microplastics absorb other pollutants from their surroundings, potentially concentrating harmful chemicals, and they infiltrate food chains from the smallest organisms upward. The authors call for stronger legislation and a combination of technological innovation, recycling, and public awareness to address this widespread threat to ecosystems and human health.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 29 citations
Review Tier 2

A review of the cost and effectiveness of solutions to address plastic pollution

This review evaluates the cost and effectiveness of technologies and policies designed to reduce plastic and microplastic pollution, from recycling and waste management to in-stream cleanup devices and regulatory measures. The authors find that addressing plastic pollution requires coordinated action across the full lifecycle of plastics.

RePEc: Research Papers in Economics
Article Tier 2

Detection to Remediation: Strategies for Managing Microplastic Pollution in Freshwater Systems

This review outlines strategies for detecting and remediating microplastic pollution in freshwater systems, covering primary and secondary sources, conventional and emerging detection techniques, and remediation approaches including filtration, bioremediation, and policy interventions.

2025 International Journal of Computational and Experimental Science and Engineering
Article Tier 2

Review and future outlook for the removal of microplastics by physical, biological and chemical methods in water bodies and wastewaters

This review compares physical, biological, and chemical methods for removing microplastics from water and wastewater, including newer approaches like advanced membranes, bacterial degradation, and electrochemical treatment. Each method has trade-offs between removal efficiency, cost, and environmental impact, and no single technique currently solves the problem completely. The review emphasizes that developing effective microplastic removal technology is urgent for protecting both ecosystems and human drinking water supplies.

2025 Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 25 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Marine plastic pollution: A systematic review of management strategies through a macroscope approach

Researchers applied a systems-level framework to review 176 studies on marine plastic pollution management, finding that waste collection infrastructure and freshwater pathways are critically understudied and that no existing strategy — from beach cleanup to biomaterials — is scalable enough to meaningfully reverse the plastic crisis.

2024 Marine Pollution Bulletin 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Removal of Microplastic Contaminants from Aquatic Environment

This review examines technologies for removing microplastics from aquatic environments, covering physical, chemical, and biological treatment methods and their relative effectiveness. Identifying and improving removal strategies is urgent because microplastics are now found throughout drinking water sources, oceans, and freshwater systems, posing risks to wildlife and human health.

2023 BENTHAM SCIENCE PUBLISHERS eBooks 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic menace: a path forward with innovative solutions to reduce pollution

This paper reviewed microplastic contamination as a complex and persistent pollutant class in aquatic ecosystems and surveyed innovative solutions being developed to reduce pollution, including advanced detection methods, filtration technologies, and biological degradation approaches. The review emphasized the need for integrated strategies spanning pollution prevention, monitoring, and remediation.

2024 Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Pollution and its Remediation

This publication reviews the growing problem of microplastic pollution in the environment and explores biological and technological strategies for remediation, including microbial degradation and engineered solutions. It highlights the urgent need for practical cleanup approaches as microplastics continue to accumulate across ecosystems worldwide.

2024 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Transportation fate and removal of microplastic pollution – A perspective on environmental pollution

This review examined the transportation pathways, environmental fate, and removal methods for microplastic pollution, discussing sources including single-use plastics and their eroded residues. The authors assessed current removal technologies and called for improved quantification frameworks to better understand and address the scale of microplastic contamination.

2020 Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastic Pollution: Challenges and Innovative Solutions

This review examines the multifaceted challenges of plastic pollution and surveys innovative solutions spanning material design, waste management, and remediation technologies. The paper synthesises current research on microplastic sources, environmental persistence, and emerging approaches to reducing plastic releases into ecosystems.

2024 Environments 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastic pollution solutions: emerging technologies to prevent and collect marine plastic pollution

Researchers created a comprehensive inventory of 52 technologies designed to either prevent plastic from entering waterways or collect existing marine plastic pollution. The study found that while many promising solutions exist, most target macroplastics and there are far fewer options for capturing microplastics. The inventory serves as a roadmap for policymakers and innovators to compare approaches and identify where more technological development is needed.

2020 Environment International 428 citations
Article Tier 2

Critical review of microplastics removal from the environment

This review evaluates technologies for removing microplastics from the environment, including physical methods like filtration, chemical treatments, and biological approaches using microorganisms. Each method has trade-offs between effectiveness, cost, and scalability, and no single technology can solve the problem alone. The authors emphasize that reducing human exposure to microplastics requires combining better removal technologies with policies that limit plastic production and waste at the source.

2022 Chemosphere 256 citations
Article Tier 2

Overview of microplastics in the environment: type, source, potential effects and removal strategies

This review examines microplastic types, sources, and health effects across land and marine environments, discussing remediation technologies and emphasizing the need for international cooperation to address this global pollution challenge.

2022 Bioprocess and Biosystems Engineering 25 citations