Major
environmental challenge as microplastics are harming our drinking water
University
of Surrey
 |
Led
by Dr Judy Lee and Marie Enfrin from the Department of Chemical and Process
Engineering at the University of Surrey and Dr Ludovic Dumée at Deakin's
Institute for Frontier Materials, the project investigated nano and
microplastics in water and wastewater treatment processes.
The team found that tiny pieces of plastic break down further during treatment processes, reducing the performance of treatment plants and impacting on water quality. The study was published in Journal of Water Research.
The team found that tiny pieces of plastic break down further during treatment processes, reducing the performance of treatment plants and impacting on water quality. The study was published in Journal of Water Research.
There
has been substantial study of microplastics pollution, but their interaction
with water and wastewater treatment processes had not been fully understood
until now.
Approximately
300 million tons of plastic are produced globally each year and up to 13
million tons of that is released into rivers and oceans, contributing to
approximately 250 million tons of plastic by 2025.
Since plastic materials are not generally degradable through weathering or ageing, this accumulation of plastic pollution in the aquatic environment creates a major concern.
Since plastic materials are not generally degradable through weathering or ageing, this accumulation of plastic pollution in the aquatic environment creates a major concern.
The
research highlights the current difficulty in detecting the presence of nano
and microplastics in treatment systems.
In order to ensure water quality meets the required safety standards and to reduce threats to our ecosystems, new detection strategies are needed with the aim of limiting the number of nano and microplastics in water and wastewater treatment systems.
In order to ensure water quality meets the required safety standards and to reduce threats to our ecosystems, new detection strategies are needed with the aim of limiting the number of nano and microplastics in water and wastewater treatment systems.
Dr
Lee, Project Lead and Senior Lecturer at the University of Surrey, said:
"The presence of nano and microplastics in water has become a major
environmental challenge. Due to their small size, nano and microplastics can
easily be ingested by living organisms and travel along water and wastewater
treatment processes. In large quantities they impact the performance of water
treatment processes by clogging up filtration units and increasing wear and
tear on materials used in the design of water treatment units."
