Water treatment plants' effluents are hotspots of microplastics (MPs) and microfibres (MFs) released into the aquatic environment because they were not designed to capture these particles. Special attention should be given to MFs, since they mainly come from laundry and are related to one of the main MP shapes detected in water and wastewater treatment plants. In this sense, Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs) could be a feasible solution for tackling MP and MF pollution, however, it is still premature to extract conclusions due to the limited number of studies on the degradation of these particles (specifically MFs) using AOPs. This review addresses the impacts of AOPs on MPs/MFs, focusing on their degradation efficiency, toxicity, and sustainability of the processes, among other aspects. The review points out that polyamide MFs can achieve mass loss >90% by photocatalytic system using TiO₂. Also, the low oxidation of MPs (100 °C, reaction time ≥ 5 h, and initial pH ≤ 3, achieving MP weight loss up to 96 %. Despite these results, better operating conditions are still required for AOPs since the ones reported so far are not feasible for full-scale application. Additionally, ozonation in treatment plants has increased the fragmentation of MPs (including MFs), leading to a new generation of MPs. More attention is needed on toxicity effects of intermediates and methods of analysis employed for the analysis of MPs/MFs in wastewater effluent should be standardized so that studies can be compared effectively. Future research should focus on the sustainability of the AOP for MP removal in water treatment (power consumption, chemicals consumed and operational costs) for a better understanding of full-scale applicability of AOP adapted to MP treatment.

Substitution of conventional feedstock with waste based alternatives is one route towards both remediation and reducing costs associated with production of algal biomass. This work explores whether exhaust gases and wastewater can replace conventional feedstock in the production of biomass from Chlorella sorokiniana. Exhaust gases were used to augment production in final effluent, anaerobic digester centrate or in standard medium. Cultures were grown in 1L bottles under illumination of 80 μmol m(-2) s(-1). The results showed an average μmax ranging between 0.04 and 0.07 h(-1), whilst the final biomass yield in different media ranged between 220 and 330 mg L(-1). Lipid yield was increased over time to 31 mg L(-1). CO2 addition resulted in complete nitrogen removal between 48 and 96 h in both final effluent and centrate. The results also indicated that levels of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides in the exhaust gases can be reduced by between 20% and 95%.