Papers

20 results
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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

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

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
Article Tier 2

What have we known so far about microplastics in drinking water treatment? A timely review

This review summarizes research on microplastic occurrence and removal in drinking water treatment, covering both laboratory and full-scale studies through August 2021. Researchers found that conventional treatment processes like coagulation-flocculation, membrane filtration, and sand filtration are generally effective at reducing microplastics in water, though results vary widely depending on conditions. The study identifies key factors influencing removal efficiency and highlights the need for further research on nanoplastics in drinking water.

2021 Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering 68 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

Treatment technologies for the removal of micro plastics from aqueous medium

Researchers reviewed treatment technologies for removing microplastics from water, finding that while multiple methods including filtration, membrane processes, and coagulation show promise, their effectiveness depends on microplastic size, type, and concentration.

2022 AIP conference proceedings 4 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

Efficient removal of microplastics through a combined treatment process: Pre-filtration and adsorption

A combined treatment process integrating coagulation, sedimentation, and filtration achieved efficient removal of microplastics from drinking water. The study supports the feasibility of adapting existing water treatment infrastructure to address microplastic contamination.

2025 Journal of Environmental Management 1 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Research and Trends of Filtration for Removing Microplastics in Freshwater Environments

This systematic review examines filtration methods for removing microplastics from freshwater environments. The findings show that advanced filtration technologies outperform traditional methods, offering practical solutions for reducing microplastic contamination in the water supply and lowering human exposure through drinking water.

2024 Environmental Quality Management 13 citations
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

A solution for controling microplastics in drinking water

Researchers developed and tested a technology for controlling microplastic contamination in drinking water, targeting particles at concentrations relevant to typical tap and bottled water exposure. The solution demonstrated effective removal of microplastics from drinking water under realistic treatment conditions.

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

Analysis of the Efficiency of Drinking Water Treatment Systems in the Removal of Microplastics

Researchers analysed the efficiency of drinking water treatment systems in removing microplastics — primarily PET, PP, PS, and PVC fibres and fragments — from source water, reviewing how physical, chemical, and biological treatment stages contribute to reduction. The review also evaluates associated health risks including inflammation, oxidative stress, endocrine disruption, and genetic damage linked to microplastic exposure via drinking water.

2024 Universidad Industrial de Santander
Article Tier 2

Reuse of Water Contaminated by Microplastics, the Effectiveness of Filtration Processes: A Review

This review evaluates filtration technologies for removing microplastics from water, finding that while treatment plants reduce microplastic counts effectively, large discharge volumes still release substantial quantities into the environment.

2022 Energies 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Performance of rapid sand filter – single media to remove microplastics

This study evaluated the performance of a rapid sand filter as a single-media drinking water treatment step for microplastic removal, finding moderate removal efficiency that varied with particle size and filter operation parameters.

2021 Water Science & Technology Water Supply 75 citations
Review Tier 2

A review of microplastic removal from water and wastewater by membrane technologies

This review examines how membrane filtration technologies can remove microplastics from drinking water and wastewater. Researchers found that advanced membranes like nanofiltration, reverse osmosis, and membrane bioreactors are among the most effective methods for capturing microplastic particles that conventional treatment plants miss. The study compares membrane approaches with other removal methods and discusses the challenges of membrane fouling caused by microplastic accumulation.

2023 Water Science & Technology 146 citations
Article Tier 2

Problems, Challenges, and Removing Methods of Micro Plastics from Water

This review examines the presence of microplastics in drinking water — both tap and bottled — and the technologies available to remove them. Microplastics have been detected in drinking water worldwide, and while conventional treatment removes some particles, smaller nanoplastics largely pass through. The authors assess filtration, coagulation, and advanced treatment options for improving microplastic removal in drinking water systems.

2021 International Journal for Research in Applied Science and Engineering Technology
Article Tier 2

[Research Advances in Removal Efficiency and Mechanism of Microplastics in Drinking Water Treatment Plants].

This Chinese-language review examined removal mechanisms and efficiency of microplastics in drinking water treatment systems, covering coagulation, filtration, and advanced treatment processes. It provided guidance on optimizing treatment plant operations to address microplastic contamination.

2024 PubMed
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
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