Scientists develop remarkable method to battle emerging threat to world's oceans: 'Stick to just about any surface'
North Carolina State University researchers in a news release detailed their breakthrough, which uses environmentally safe materials that work even in wet, salty conditions. In fact, they thrive — thanks to the amazing design of the self-dispersing microcleaners.
The idea behind the new technology — "Can we make the cleaning materials in the form of soft particles that self-disperse in water, capture microplastics as they sink, and then return to the surface with the captured microplastic contaminants?" — was a moon shot. Those were the words of chemical and biomolecular engineering professor and corresponding author Orlin Velev.
The team stuck the landing.
Its paper was published in Advanced Functional Materials in March. The research shows how ingenuity can reverse the harm done to the planet by microplastics, a scourge of both human health and the environment. The tiny plastic fragments, less than 5 millimeters in size, come from larger plastics, which do not break down but just continually degrade. Microplastics have been found everywhere on Earth and linked to Alzheimer's disease, fertility problems, and cancer.
The process features eugenol, a plant-based oil that works as a dispersant when these soft dendritic colloids hit the water. The polymer-based colloids — in the form of small pellets — can "stick to just about any surface," per the release, hosted by Phys.org.
"The cleansing particles in this research are made from chitosan, a biodegradable polymer originating from chitin, which comes from processed shellfish waste," Velev said.
Magnesium makes the pellets bubble and rise to the surface after they've rounded up microplastics. A gelatin coating delays the magnesium's reaction with water, so the colloids have time to collect the targets. They rise in "a dense, scummy mixture," doctoral candidate and first author Haeleen Hong said.
The particles' method of movement may be even neater — and they can "swim" for 30 minutes.
Eugenol "makes the pellets move in the water by the so-called 'camphor boat effect,' decreasing the surface tension on one side of the pellet and driving it forward. This allows our microcleaners to spread out across a larger area, capturing microplastics as they move and descend," Hong said.
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And the process could even be circular, with the skimmed scum being used to make more chitosan and then more microcleaners. The paper shows proof of concept, and more research is necessary to ensure it can be scaled up.
Until then, you can avoid microplastics by ditching single-use water bottles, filtering your drinking water, cooking and heating food in nonplastic products, and storing hot food in safe containers. There are other simple steps to take to use less plastic, too.
Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
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