Today, microplastic pollution is a growing concern, as tiny plastic particles have been found everywhere, including in tap water, rivers, lakes and oceans.
The serious problem of microplastics
Microplastics are tiny particles ranging in size from a few micrometers to a few millimeters. They are therefore very harmful to the environment and potentially to human health.
When plastics reach the sea, they can be ingested by marine wildlife and cause bioaccumulation within them, potentially passing through the food chain to humans. They can remain suspended or float on the surface of the water, sink and settle to the seafloor, or even become trapped in Arctic ice.
Currently, traditional methods of filtering microplastics from water pose major problems. They tend to have very fine filter mesh, which poses greater clogging problems and therefore reduces efficiency. Fixed filter systems are not optimal in oceans or lakes, where pollution is much more widespread.
The floating drone that catches microplastics
A team of scientists from the Extreme Materials Research Center of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) developed an innovative solution that can compete with traditional methods, be more competitive and achieve better results.
The innovative technology developed and applied to floating drones has been published in the journal Advanced Science. The floating drone has special teeth that attract water, creating small “water bridges” between them and capturing microplastics on the surface, thanks to its hydrophilic ratchet structure.
Water bridges between teeth work through the surface tension property of water, which attracts microplastics and traps them.
They can remove microplastics of all shapes and sizes, from 1 micrometer to 4 millimeters, making it a very effective tool for cleaning large bodies of water.
They do not clog and maintain high efficiency compared to traditional filters. Tests show that they can trap more than 80% of existing microplastics, including very common materials such as polystyrene, propylene or polyethylene.
Other potential uses
The drone's ability to work autonomously is particularly remarkable. The drone can move alone in lakes, rivers and oceans, removing microplastics in real time as if it were a robot vacuum cleaner.
Floating drone technology is a promising way to tackle the major problem of marine microplastic pollution.
On the other hand, according to its creators, this same hydrophilic ratchet design could be applied in stationary systems, such as fixed water filters for aquaculture farms, or suitable for domestic wastewater treatment devices, which would filter microplastics in drinking water.
The combination of this innovative design and its many practical applications could help clean up our rivers and improve water quality around the world.
However, to operate in real operational environments, it is necessary to resolve the problems linked to its battery and possible complementary means, such as solar panels. With further development, it could become a household tool to ensure cleaner and safer water.
Article reference:
Seohyun C. et all (2024). “Capillary Skimming of Floating Microplastics via a Water-Bridged Ratchet.” Advanced Science. https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202408623
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