Influence of Different Coagulants on Microplastics Removal
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) have become a topic of concern for human health over the past several years and drinking water has been identified as an important pathway for MP exposure. Coagulation processes in conventional drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) have been found to significantly reduce MPs in treated water. Most research to date on the effects of coagulation and MP removal has been conducted using pristine plastic particles or lab-aged model particles. These pristine and model plastics lack many important surface characteristics of the environmental MPs found in the raw water treated by DWTPs. In this project, I analyzed the effectiveness of different coagulants, doses, and coagulant aids to remove environmental MPs under typical conditions used in DWTPs. This project utilized raw water from the Olentangy River to analyze MP concentration and removal via coagulation. Three different chemical coagulants commonly used in DWTPs (ferric chloride, aluminum sulfate, and aluminum chlorohydrate) were compared for MP removal using jar testing methods. Microplastics were isolated from the raw and treated water and imaged using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to quantify MP content and determine removal efficiencies. The samples were also analyzed using optical photothermal infrared (OPTIR) spectroscopy to characterize polymer types present in raw and treated water samples. The results showed the dose of aluminum sulfate (alum), ferric chloride (FeCl3), and aluminum…
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