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Removing microplastics from wastewater using leading-edge treatment technologies: a solution to microplastic pollution—a review

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Abstract

Microplastics (MPs) in environmental studies have revealed that public sewage treatment plants are a common pathway for microplastics to reach local surroundings. Microplastics are becoming more of a worry, posing a danger to both marine wildlife and humans. These plastic items not only contribute to the macrocosmic proliferation of plastics but also the scattering of microplastics and the concentration of other micropollutant-containing objects, increasing the number of pollutants identified. Microplastics’ behavior, movement, transformation, and persistence mechanisms, as well as their mode of action in various wastewater effluent treatment procedures, are still unknown. They are making microplastics made from wastewater a big deal. We know that microplastics enter wastewater treatment facilities (WWTPs), that wastewater is released into the atmosphere, and that this wastewater has been considered to represent a threat to habitats and ground character based on our literature assessment. The basic methods of wastewater and sewage sludge, as well as the treatment procedure and early characterization, are covered throughout the dissection of the problematic scientific conceptualization.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge support from the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and Post-Doctoral fellow (Teaching and Learning) Scheme under MJIIT-UTM and are thankful to the South Ural State University for extending support for research collaboration and invitation as visiting senior researcher.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, KPR Institute of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, 641407, India

    Arunkumar Priya & Gururajan Anusha

  2. Saveetha School of Engineering, Department of Biotechnology, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Thandalam, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 602105, India

    Sundaram Thanigaivel

  3. Renewable Energy lab, Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, KPR Institute of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, 641407, India

    Alagar Karthick

  4. Centre for Materials Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, Bharath Institute of Higher Education and Research, Selaiyur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 600073, India

    Vinayagam Mohanavel & Palanivel Velmurugan

  5. Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, College of Life Science, Sejong University, Seoul, 05006, South Korea

    Balamuralikrishnan Balasubramanian

  6. Department of Mechanical Engineering, K. Ramakrishnan College of Engineering, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, 621112, India

    Manickam Ravichandran

  7. Department of Mechanical Engineering and University Centre for Research & Development, Chandigarh University, Mohali, Punjab, 140413, India

    Manickam Ravichandran

  8. Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Jalan Sultan Yahya Petra, 54100, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Hesam Kamyab

  9. Electric Power Station, Network, and Supply System, South Ural State University, (National Research University), 76 Prospekt Lenina, 454080, Chelyabinsk, Russian Federation

    Irina Mikhailovna Kirpichnikova

  10. Engineering Department, Razak Faculty of Technology and Informatics, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Jln Sultan Yahya Petra, 54100, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Shreeshivadasan Chelliapan

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  1. Arunkumar Priya
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  2. Gururajan Anusha
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  3. Sundaram Thanigaivel
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  7. Balamuralikrishnan Balasubramanian
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Priya, A., Anusha, G., Thanigaivel, S. et al. Removing microplastics from wastewater using leading-edge treatment technologies: a solution to microplastic pollution—a review. Bioprocess Biosyst Eng 46, 309–321 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00449-022-02715-x

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