Removal of polystyrene and polyethylene microplastics using PAC and FeCl3 coagulation: Performance and mechanism

Screening on the sorption of emerging contaminants to polystyrene and polyethylene and use of coagulation – flocculation process for microplastics’ removal

“…Comparing the removal efficiencies of two MPs, it is observed that the removal of PS was higher than PE for all tested coagulants as well as in the experiments conducted in the absence of coagulant (Figures 3, 4). This trend has also been observed in previous studies comparing the removal of two MPs during coagulation -flocculation process and it is probably due to the different density of tested materials (Zhou et al, 2021).…”

“…Concerning the removal of PS, in the absence of coagulants, PS was removed by 83.3 ± 3.9% after 30 min of settling. This value is higher than that observed by Zhou et al (2021) who used a PS with density equal to 1.05 g/cm 3 and observed a removal equal of 50.78%, when no coagulant was added. On the other hand, Xue et al (2021) reported high PS removal efficiency (>86% for PS particles of 45 and 90 µm) after 15 min settling.…”

“…For measuring the concentrations of MPs in coagulation experiments, the procedure described by Zhou et al (2021) was followed with some modifications. The initial concentration of MPs was calculated based to the amount of PS or PE that was weighted in each flask.…”

The Effect of Wastewater Treatment Plants on Retainment of Plastic Microparticles to Enhance Water Quality—A Review

“…Looking at chemical coagulation-flocculation processes, G. Zhou et al [190] used polyaluminium chloride (PAC) and ferric chloride (FeCl 3 ) as coagulants for PE and PS microplastics, finding 77.8% (PS) and 29.7% (PE) removal efficiencies with PAC and 64% (PS) and 17.4% (PE removal efficiencies with FeCl 3 . Interestingly, with these systems the smaller sized PE microplastics could be removed more efficiently, while for PS it was just the reverse [190]. N. Shahi et al have turned to using alum coagulant alone or in combination with polyamine-coated (PC) sand.…”

Removal of highly dispersive microspheres from wastewater using modified spirulina hetero-coagulation and their application in flame retardancy

“…Coagulation techniques provide a series of cost-effective solutions for tertiary treatment of microspheres, rarely depending on advanced equipments or harsh working conditions. [13][14][15] Zhou et al reported that shows research about the removal performance and coagulation mechanism of polystyrene (PS) and PE microbeads in the natural water have been studied systematically. 15 Polyaluminium chloride (PAC) and ferric chloride (FeCl3) as coagulants demonstrate differences in removal efficiency of PS and PE microbeads.…”