Identification, Characterisation and removal of microplastics from Prairie View A&M wastewater effluent using ceramic membranes.

Microplastics (MPs) and solids in wastewater present significant environmental and health challenges, necessitating advanced treatment methods. Our study investigates the efficacy of 1.4μm ceramic membranes in removing MPs, TSS, and Total solids from wastewater at the Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) WWTP. The PVAMU plant effluent contains TS levels of 666 ± 0.2 mg/L, with a post-filtration value of 647.25 ± 24.5 mg/L. The TSS removal efficiency through 1.4μm ceramic membrane filtration was 94%, reducing TSS from 6.5 mg/L to 0.49 mg/L. The MP concentration decreased from 0.014 MPs/L to 0.006 MPs/L post-filtration. The correlation between TSS and MP concentration suggests MPs are primarily contained within suspended solids. The microplastic recovery rate post-filtration was 35.4%, with a linear relationship between TSS and MP concentrations. The effluent's total dissolved solids (TDS) levels were 659.5 ± 6.3 mg/L, and post-filtration TDS was 647.01 ± 24.6 mg/L. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis confirmed polyester in the wastewater. Post-filtration analysis showed fibre-shaped MPs remained relatively unchanged, while the proportion of microbeads decreased and fragmented MPs increased, indicating selective removal efficiencies of the ceramic membrane.