Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Investigating microplastics at two drinking water treatment plants within a river catchment

Researchers tracked microplastics through each treatment stage at two Czech drinking water treatment plants on the same river, finding that the downstream plant received far higher raw water concentrations (1,296 vs. 23 particles/L) and that current treatment reduced but did not eliminate microplastics from finished drinking water.

2023
Article Tier 2

Differences in the occurrence of microplastic at two technically diverse drinking water treatment plants within the same river catchment

Researchers compared microplastic occurrence in drinking water from two technically different treatment facilities, examining how treatment technology influences the presence and type of microplastics in finished drinking water. The two plants produced water with significantly different microplastic profiles, indicating that treatment technology is a key determinant of microplastic concentrations reaching consumers.

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

Differences in the occurrence of microplastic at two technically diverse drinking water treatment plants within the same river catchment

Researchers compared microplastic occurrence in drinking water produced by two treatment plants using different technologies, finding that treatment design significantly affected which and how many microplastics remained in finished water. The results highlight the importance of treatment technology in determining consumer exposure to microplastics in tap water.

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

Fate of microplastics in the drinking water production

Researchers tracked the fate of microplastics through drinking water treatment processes, finding that conventional treatment steps like coagulation, sedimentation, and filtration removed the majority of microplastics but did not eliminate them entirely.

2022 Water Research 157 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence of microplastics in raw and treated drinking water

Researchers analyzed raw and treated water from three water treatment plants and found microplastics in all samples, though treatment reduced particle counts by roughly 70 to 80 percent. The vast majority of detected particles were smaller than 10 micrometers, a size range often missed by other studies. The findings highlight that while water treatment removes most microplastics, very small particles can still pass through conventional filtration systems.

2018 The Science of The Total Environment 1073 citations
Article Tier 2

Contamination and Removal Efficiency of Microplastics and Synthetic Fibres in a Conventional Drinking Water Treatment Plant

Researchers found that a conventional drinking water treatment plant in Geneva removed the majority of microplastics from raw water, with coagulation and sand filtration contributing most to removal, though some particles persisted through to finished drinking water.

2022 Frontiers in Water 33 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence and removal of microplastics by advanced and conventional drinking water treatment facilities

Researchers assessed microplastic occurrence and removal efficiency at drinking water treatment plants using both conventional and advanced treatment processes. Advanced treatment steps such as ultrafiltration and activated carbon significantly improved microplastic removal compared to conventional coagulation and filtration alone.

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

Microplastic occurrence after conventional and nanofiltration processes at drinking water treatment plants: Preliminary results

Researchers detected microplastics in source river water and finished drinking water at three treatment plants in the Paris region, finding that standard treatment steps including coagulation-flocculation and sand filtration reduced but did not eliminate MPs. Nanofiltration achieved higher removal rates, suggesting advanced filtration is needed for near-complete MP removal from drinking water.

2022 Frontiers in Water 54 citations
Article Tier 2

Assessment of microplastic contamination in drinking water from an italian plant: An analytical study

Researchers analyzed microplastic contamination at multiple treatment stages in a drinking water plant in northern Italy that processes turbid river water supplemented with groundwater, quantifying particles through sedimentation, flocculation, sand filtration, activated carbon adsorption, and disinfection stages.

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

Removal of microplastics via drinking water treatment: Current knowledge and future directions

This review examines what is currently known about microplastics in drinking water systems and how well existing water treatment processes remove them. Researchers found that while conventional treatment steps like coagulation and filtration do reduce microplastic levels, significant amounts can still persist through to tap water. The study calls for more research into optimizing treatment processes and developing monitoring strategies specifically targeting microplastic contamination in drinking water.

2020 Chemosphere 386 citations
Review Tier 2

Removal of microplastics and nanoplastics in water treatment processes: A systematic literature review

Researchers systematically reviewed 103 studies across 26 water treatment plants in 12 countries to assess how well various technologies remove microplastics and nanoplastics from drinking water, finding that while coagulation, filtration, and advanced treatments help, significant gaps remain. The review identifies that no single process achieves complete removal, leaving microplastics as a persistent contaminant in treated water supplies.

2024 Journal of Water Process Engineering 34 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence and removal of microplastics by advanced and conventional drinking water treatment facilities

Researchers evaluated the performance of both advanced and conventional drinking water treatment processes for removing microplastics, finding that advanced methods such as ultrafiltration substantially outperform standard coagulation and filtration. Most conventional treatment plants leave a meaningful fraction of microplastics in finished drinking water.

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

Occurrence and Removal Efficiency of Microplastics in Four Drinking Water Treatment Plants in Zhengzhou, China

Researchers sampled four drinking water treatment plants in Zhengzhou, China, and found microplastics in raw water (13–25 particles per litre) with only partial removal — fibers and fragments dominated, and the treatment process actually shifted polymer composition, with PET becoming the most prevalent type in finished drinking water. The study is significant because it demonstrates that standard treatment cannot fully eliminate microplastics from tap water, meaning that people are regularly consuming microplastics from treated municipal supplies.

2023 Water 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic removal across ten drinking water treatment facilities and distribution systems

Researchers characterized microplastic removal across ten drinking water treatment facilities and found that conventional municipal treatment achieved greater than 97.5% removal, primarily through granular media filtration or ultrafiltration. Untreated source waters contained between approximately 1,200 and 7,200 microplastic particles per liter, with polypropylene, polyethylene, and polyamide being the most common types. The findings provide valuable data on microplastic exposure through drinking water and the effectiveness of existing treatment processes.

2025 npj Clean Water 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in drinking water treatment – Current knowledge and research needs

This review examines the current state of knowledge about microplastics in drinking water treatment, including how treatment plants remove these particles. Researchers found that conventional treatment processes like coagulation and filtration can remove a significant portion of microplastics, but some particles still pass through to finished water. The study identifies key research gaps around the effectiveness of different treatment technologies and the health implications of residual microplastics.

2019 The Science of The Total Environment 421 citations
Article Tier 2

Contamination and removal efficiency of microplastics and synthetic fibres in a conventional drinking water treatment plant in Geneva, Switzerland

Researchers evaluated microplastic removal efficiency at a large drinking water treatment plant in Geneva, finding that conventional treatment processes effectively reduced microplastic and synthetic fiber concentrations from Lake Geneva source water.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 56 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of Drinking Water Treatment on Removal of Microplastics

Microplastics were measured throughout six drinking water treatment facilities using Raman spectroscopy and found at concentrations ranging widely in source water, with treatment processes achieving substantial but incomplete removal.

2024 TSpace
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Removal in Water Treatment System: A Study of Baghdad’s Wastewater and Drinking Water Treatment Plants

Researchers analyzed microplastic levels at inlets and outlets of two drinking water plants and two wastewater plants in Baghdad, Iraq, characterizing particles by color, shape, size, and composition to assess treatment efficiency and identify residual contamination in treated water.

2025 IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science
Article Tier 2

Performance of Conventional Drinking Water Treatment Plants in Removing Microplastics in East Java, Indonesia

This Indonesian study tested two conventional drinking water treatment plants in East Java for their ability to remove microplastics, finding that full multi-stage treatment achieved significant reduction but did not eliminate all particles. The results show that conventional water treatment partially protects consumers but may not prevent all microplastic ingestion through drinking water.

2023 Journal of Ecological Engineering 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Assessment of microplastic contamination in drinking water from an italian plant: An analytical study

Researchers analyzed microplastic contamination in drinking water from an Italian treatment plant that processes turbid surface river water through sedimentation, flocculation, sand filtration, activated carbon adsorption, and disinfection, collecting 1-2.5 liter samples in dark glass bottles for analysis. The study characterized particle types, sizes, and polymer composition at the plant outlet to assess treatment efficacy and residual microplastic levels in finished drinking water.

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

Understanding and Improving Microplastic Removal during Water Treatment: Impact of Coagulation and Flocculation

Researchers systematically tested coagulation and flocculation for removing microplastics from drinking water, finding that removal efficiency depended strongly on plastic particle size and whether particles had been weathered, with smaller pristine particles being the hardest to remove.

2020 Environmental Science & Technology 424 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence and fate of microplastics from a water source to two different drinking water treatment plants in a megacity in eastern China

Researchers tracked microplastics through two drinking water treatment plants in a major Chinese city and found that treatment removed 73-83% of microplastics from the water. However, some microplastics were still present in the treated drinking water, and chlorine disinfection actually increased polystyrene levels. The smallest particles (2-5 micrometers) were the hardest to remove, which is a concern because smaller particles may be more easily absorbed by the human body.

2024 Environmental Pollution 32 citations
Article Tier 2

Identification, Quantification, and Evaluation of Microplastics Removal Efficiency in a Water Treatment Plant (A Case Study in Iran)

Researchers investigated microplastic occurrence and removal efficiency across treatment stages of a drinking water treatment plant in Iran, finding an influent concentration of 1597.7 MPs/L with an overall removal efficiency of 83.7%, yet still discharging an estimated 2.25 x 10^11 MPs daily into the distribution system, with PP, PE, and PET as the dominant polymers.

2022 Air Soil and Water Research 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Conventional and biological treatment for the removal of microplastics from drinking water

Researchers examined microplastic removal by a full-scale drinking water treatment plant, finding that conventional coagulation-flocculation-filtration processes and biological filters with granular activated carbon effectively reduced microplastic concentrations in treated water.

2021 Chemosphere 101 citations