Academic Journal
Source fingerprints, process fate, and risk redistribution of microplastics in a full-scale wastewater treatment plant receiving e-waste dismantling wastewater.
| Title: | Source fingerprints, process fate, and risk redistribution of microplastics in a full-scale wastewater treatment plant receiving e-waste dismantling wastewater. |
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| Authors: | Wen M; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Health, School of Environment and Climate, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 511443, China., Hou Y; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Health, School of Environment and Climate, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 511443, China., Ou H; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Health, School of Environment and Climate, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 511443, China. Electronic address: touhuase@jnu.edu.cn., Wen Y; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Health, School of Environment and Climate, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 511443, China., Lu Y; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Health, School of Environment and Climate, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 511443, China., Liao Z; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Health, School of Environment and Climate, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 511443, China. |
| Source: | Water research [Water Res] 2026 Oct 15; Vol. 305, pp. 126514. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Jul 16. |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: Pergamon Press Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 0105072 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1879-2448 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 00431354 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Water Res Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: Oxford, Pergamon Press. |
| MeSH Terms: | Wastewater* , Microplastics* , Waste Disposal, Fluid* , Electronic Waste*, Water Pollutants, Chemical ; China ; Bioreactors |
| Abstract: | Microplastics (MPs) from industrial activities remain far less understood than those from municipal sources, particularly in wastewater systems serving e-waste dismantling. Here, a full-scale wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) dedicated to e-waste dismantling wastewater in Guiyu, China, was investigated through four seasonal sampling campaigns covering its two parallel treatment trains, namely an anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A/A/O) oxidation ditch-secondary clarification train and an A/A/O oxidation ditch-membrane bioreactor (MBR) train. MPs were quantified and characterized by micro-Raman spectroscopy, and their process fate, source-related fingerprints, co-occurrence with phthalate esters (PAEs) and organophosphate esters (OPEs), and screening-level hazard redistribution were systematically evaluated. The raw influent contained 6637.3 ± 927.4 MPs/L, far exceeding typical levels reported for municipal WWTPs and reaching the upper range of industrial wastewater systems. Although both treatment trains reduced aqueous MP concentrations by 2-3 orders of magnitude, the removed particles were largely transferred to sludge rather than eliminated. E-waste-related engineering polymers dominated the MP assemblage, accounting for 65.7% in the influent and 69.6% in dry sludge. Angular fragments with sharp edges and regular outlines were also consistently abundant, contributing 59.8% and 66.1% of MPs in the influent and dry sludge, respectively. Together with significant positive associations between e-waste-related MPs and multiple high-molecular-weight PAEs and OPEs, these polymeric, morphological, and pollutant-co-occurrence features support an integrated source-fingerprint-based inference for e-waste-related MPs in this WWTP. Screening-level hazard assessment further suggested that wastewater treatment lowered the hazard-weighted MP burden in the aqueous phase but redistributed the dominant burden to sludge. This study provides a process-oriented understanding of MP behavior in a dedicated e-waste wastewater treatment system and highlights that integrated source fingerprints and sludge-phase accumulation should be explicitly considered in the assessment and control of industrial MP pollution. (Copyright © 2026 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: E-waste dismantling wastewater; Microplastics; Risk redistribution; Source fingerprint; Wastewater treatment plant |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 0 (Wastewater) 0 (Microplastics) 0 (Water Pollutants, Chemical) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260718 Date Completed: 20260909 Latest Revision: 20260909 |
| Update Code: | 20260909 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.watres.2026.126514 |
| PMID: | 42470988 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1879-2448 |
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| DOI: | 10.1016/j.watres.2026.126514 |