Presentation Profile
Measuring microplastic removal from sewage treatment plants using large-volume extraction and TD–GC–MS
Main Author
Mark Bieganski - Markes
- Caroline Widdowson - Markes
- Hannah Calder - Markes
- Rachael Szafnauer - Markes
Abstract:
Sewage treatment plants (STPs) were largely designed before microplastics became recognised as an emerging environmental contaminant, and current approaches for assessing their removal efficiency remain limited. Here, we present a novel analytical workflow combining off-line, large volume pyrolysis of the whole filter with analysis by thermal desorption–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (TD–GC–MS) for the reproducible characterisation of multiple microplastic types over a wide mass range. The approach enables comprehensive assessment of microplastic profiles in wastewater and effluent, providing valuable data to evaluate treatment performance and support the development of improved strategies for microplastic removal prior to environmental discharge.
