Occurrence and Characteristics of Microplastics in a Small-Scale Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant in India
摘要
The study evaluates the microplastics found in a small-scale wastewater treatment plant in Jaipur, a city in North-West part of India. The samples were taken from the inlet, secondary treated and outlet during the months of July and August, 2022. The samples were analyzed for the presence of microplastics, their shape and size. The occurrence of microplastics at various sampling points were found to be 31.1 ± 9.3, 11.4 ± 6.0, and 1.5 ± 0.4, respectively, for inlet, after secondary treatment and at the outlet, respectively. About 63% of the microplastics are removed between the inlet and the secondary treatment level. Furthermore, 86% of the particles are removed between secondary treatment and the outlet. Most particle sizes at the inlet and during the secondary treatment phase range between 1000 and 2500 μm. However, at the outlet, the predominant particle size narrows to between 500–1000 μm, indicating a variation in microplastic sizes across different treatment stages. The study helps in determining removal efficiency of WWTPs in urban areas and the total loadings of microplastics to surface waters from urban areas.