Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Enrichment of microplastics from drinking water treatment sludge

Researchers investigated the enrichment and concentration of microplastics in drinking water treatment sludge, building on prior evidence that treatment processes remove up to 93% of microplastics from source water and thereby accumulate them in sludge byproducts. The study developed and evaluated methods for isolating and characterizing microplastics from this underexplored but potentially significant secondary pollution reservoir.

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

Enrichment of microplastics from drinking water treatment sludge

Researchers developed an enrichment protocol to concentrate and recover microplastics from drinking water treatment sludge, where up to 93% of influent microplastics are captured during treatment but where analysis of the resulting sludge has remained methodologically challenging. The study established extraction and detection procedures to quantify microplastics in this concentrated waste matrix, enabling better characterisation of the fate of removed particles.

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

Evaluation of Potentially Toxic Elements and Microplastics in the Water Treatment Facility

Researchers evaluated potentially toxic elements and microplastics throughout a water treatment facility, finding both contaminant classes present at various treatment stages and raising concerns about the adequacy of current drinking water purification.

2024 Research Square (Research Square) 1 citations
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

Investigating the Potential of Coagulants to Improve Microplastics Removal in Wastewater and Tap Water

Researchers found that adding coagulants (FeCl3 or Al2(SO4)3) to wastewater and tap water improved microplastic removal, with aluminum sulfate achieving 43% and 62% removal efficiencies respectively, though the high concentrations required suggest that combining coagulants with organic polyelectrolytes could improve practicality.

2025 Microplastics
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

Identifying microplastic contamination in drinking water: analysis and evaluation using spectroscopic methods

Researchers developed analytical methods to identify and quantify microplastic contamination in drinking water, evaluating extraction efficiency and detection accuracy across different water types and plastic particle sizes. The study assessed health implications based on measured plastic loads in treated water.

2024 Interdisciplinary Environmental Review
Article Tier 2

Occurrence and distribution of microplastics in water supply systems: In water and pipe scales

Researchers found microplastics present throughout drinking water supply systems, both in treated water and accumulated within pipe scales, with concentrations in pipe scales being significantly higher than in the water itself.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 113 citations
Article Tier 2

Efficiency and mechanism of micro- and nano-plastic removal with polymeric Al-Fe bimetallic coagulants: Role of Fe addition

Researchers investigated polymeric Al-Fe bimetallic coagulants for removing micro- and nanoplastics from drinking water, finding that iron addition enhanced nanoplastic removal efficiency through improved charge neutralization and floc formation mechanisms.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 33 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 characteristics of microplastics by Fe-based coagulants during drinking water treatment

The removal of polyethylene microplastics from drinking water was tested with Fe-based coagulants under various conditions, finding that traditional coagulation alone achieved below 15% removal, while coagulation combined with ultrafiltration substantially improved performance. The study identifies the limitations of conventional water treatment for microplastic removal and highlights ultrafiltration as a necessary add-on for effective particle reduction.

2018 Journal of Environmental Sciences 446 citations
Article Tier 2

Evaluation of Efficiently Removing Secondary Effluent Organic Matters (EfOM) by Al-Based Coagulant for Wastewater Recycling: A Case Study with an Industrial-Scale Food-Processing Wastewater Treatment Plant

Not relevant to microplastics — this study evaluates aluminium-based coagulants for removing organic matter from food-processing wastewater to enable safe water reuse.

2023 Membranes 7 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 wastewater treatment: current status and future trends].

This review summarizes current research on microplastic occurrence, removal, and fate in wastewater treatment plants, noting that while plants capture most microplastics in activated sludge, significant numbers still escape into effluent. The sludge itself then becomes a major pathway for microplastics to enter agricultural soils when applied as fertilizer. Future treatment improvements and sludge management policies are needed to reduce these release pathways.

2022 PubMed 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Identification and quantification of microplastics in wastewater treatment plant effluent: Investigation of the fate and biological effects

This study identified and quantified microplastics in wastewater treatment plant effluents and sludge, finding particles in all samples with fibers being the dominant type. The research contributes to understanding how much microplastic reaches surface waters via wastewater discharge and how much is captured in sludge that is subsequently applied to agricultural land.

2018 Griffith Research Online (Griffith University, Queensland, Australia) 4 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

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

Method development and optimization for assessing microplastic distribution in a drinking water treatment plant: insights into seasonal variation and spatial dissemination from an Italian study.

This study developed and optimized methods for assessing microplastic distribution in a specific environmental matrix, addressing analytical challenges related to particle extraction, identification, and quantification. Optimized protocols improved recovery efficiency and reduced contamination artifacts, supporting more reliable monitoring of microplastic pollution.

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

Microplastics and nanoplastics in water: Improving removal in wastewater treatment plants with alternative coagulants

Laboratory tests showed that conventional aluminum sulfate (alum) coagulant becomes much less effective at removing micro- and nanoplastics from water at pH above 7.8—a common condition in municipal wastewater—but switching to aluminum chlorohydrate largely restores removal efficiency. This matters because wastewater treatment plants are a critical barrier preventing microplastics from entering rivers and oceans, and many currently use alum. The study gives water utilities a practical, drop-in solution to significantly improve microplastic capture under challenging water chemistry.

2026 The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering
Article Tier 2

Fate of microplastics in wastewater treatment plants and their environmental dispersion with effluent and sludge

Researchers tracked microplastics through a wastewater treatment plant and found 12 different polymer types in effluents and sludge, with smaller particles (25–104 μm) most abundant and fibres displaying lower sizes than fragments. The study demonstrates that WWTPs do not fully remove microplastics and that processed sludge marketed as soil amendment carries plastic contamination.

2019 Environmental Pollution 589 citations
Article Tier 2

Properties and fate of microplastics entering drinking water treatment plants

This conference abstract reviews how microplastics behave as they pass through drinking water treatment plants, noting that while conventional treatment removes many particles, some still reach tap water consumers. It calls for more data on the types and concentrations of microplastics entering and leaving treatment systems.

2020
Article Tier 2

Screening of microplastics in water and sludge lines of a drinking water treatment plant in Catalonia, Spain

Researchers screened water and sludge throughout a drinking water treatment plant near Barcelona, Spain, for microplastics ranging from 20 to 5,000 micrometers. Microplastics were detected at multiple treatment stages and in the sludge, with conventional coagulation-flocculation and filtration providing partial but incomplete removal.

2022 Water Research 77 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
Article Tier 2

Advances in analysis of microplastics in drinking water treatment plants. Fluorescence techniques using iDye Pink

Microplastics between 0.1 and 5 mm were detected at multiple stages of three drinking water treatment plants, with Nile Red fluorescence staining and spectroscopic techniques showing that while treatment reduces MP loads, particles persist into final treated water.

2023 Environmental Technology & Innovation 18 citations