Researchers turn water-treatment waste into filter that removes 97% microplastics

Microplastics are now found across aquatic environments, creating a difficult challenge for water-treatment systems that must remove tiny plastic particles without generating more waste. A new approach investigated in 2026 takes an unusual route: instead of treating water-treatment waste as something that simply needs to be discarded, researchers turned it into a material that could help filter microplastics from water. The idea links two environmental problems at once, waste generated during water treatment and persistent plastic pollution. In tests using real water rather than only laboratory-prepared samples, the resulting filter achieved removal efficiencies ranging from 86.9% to 97.1%, depending on the conditions and particles being treated.