Effect of embedding a sieving phase into the current plastic recycling process to capture microplastics

Staplevan, MJ; Ansari, AJ; Ahmed, A; Hai, FI

Effect of embedding a sieving phase into the current plastic recycling process to capture microplastics

Staplevan, MJ Ansari, AJ Ahmed, A Hai, FI

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Publisher:: Elsevier
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Journal of Water Process Engineering, 2024, 66, pp. 106075
Issue Date:: 2024-09-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Staplevan, MJ
dc.contributor.author	Ansari, AJ
dc.contributor.author	Ahmed, A
dc.contributor.author	Hai, FI
dc.date.accessioned	2024-10-25T03:13:48Z
dc.date.available	2024-10-25T03:13:48Z
dc.date.issued	2024-09-01
dc.identifier.citation	Journal of Water Process Engineering, 2024, 66, pp. 106075
dc.identifier.issn	2214-7144
dc.identifier.issn	2214-7144
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/181576
dc.description.abstract	This study proposes a systematic change to the current plastic recycling process by introducing a sieving stage in between the shredding and washing units to capture the microplastics being unintentionally generated and released. The benefit of adding the sieving stage to minimise microplastics release to wash water was highlighted by comparing the findings with the case where microplastics are released to wash water and a conventional coagulation process is used to remove microplastics from water. Two coagulants, aluminium sulphate (Al2(SO4)3.18H2O) and aluminium chloride (AlCl3.6H2O), were used to remove polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polycarbonate (PC) from water. The size of the microplastic particles played a significant role on the removal efficiency. The maximum removal efficiency of PET by AlCl3.6H2O was 99.2 % for the particles in 1.18–5 mm range, whereas the average removal efficiency over the whole tested size range of 0.15–5.00 mm was 76.1 % for the same plastic-coagulant combination. By contrast, the addition of a 5 mm sieve between the shredding and the washing units was found to capture 96–97 % of the microplastics generated. The findings of this innovative experiment demonstrate the beneficial impact that this strategy has on capturing microplastics prior to entering water matrix.
dc.language	en
dc.publisher	Elsevier
dc.relation.ispartof	Journal of Water Process Engineering
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.jwpe.2024.106075
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	0905 Civil Engineering, 0907 Environmental Engineering
dc.subject.classification	4004 Chemical engineering
dc.subject.classification	4005 Civil engineering
dc.subject.classification	4011 Environmental engineering
dc.title	Effect of embedding a sieving phase into the current plastic recycling process to capture microplastics
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	66
utslib.for	0905 Civil Engineering
utslib.for	0907 Environmental Engineering
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Strength - CTWW - Centre for Technology in Water and Wastewater Treatment
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/UTS Groups
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/UTS Groups/Centre for Technology in Water and Wastewater Treatment (CTWW)
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2024-10-25T03:13:46Z
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	66

Abstract:

This study proposes a systematic change to the current plastic recycling process by introducing a sieving stage in between the shredding and washing units to capture the microplastics being unintentionally generated and released. The benefit of adding the sieving stage to minimise microplastics release to wash water was highlighted by comparing the findings with the case where microplastics are released to wash water and a conventional coagulation process is used to remove microplastics from water. Two coagulants, aluminium sulphate (Al2(SO4)3.18H2O) and aluminium chloride (AlCl3.6H2O), were used to remove polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polycarbonate (PC) from water. The size of the microplastic particles played a significant role on the removal efficiency. The maximum removal efficiency of PET by AlCl3.6H2O was 99.2 % for the particles in 1.18–5 mm range, whereas the average removal efficiency over the whole tested size range of 0.15–5.00 mm was 76.1 % for the same plastic-coagulant combination. By contrast, the addition of a 5 mm sieve between the shredding and the washing units was found to capture 96–97 % of the microplastics generated. The findings of this innovative experiment demonstrate the beneficial impact that this strategy has on capturing microplastics prior to entering water matrix.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/181576