Newly Created Synthetic Sponges Can Trap Microplastics From Water
Sponges have been used throughout history for many use cases from painting and cleaning to functioning as vessels for liquids. What’s great about sponges is that, whether natural or synthetic, they are exceptional at trapping tiny particles within their many pores.
Recently, scientists started exploring the potential of sponges in the battle against microplastic pollution. So, this August, Chinese researchers unveiled a synthetic sponge that can trap microscopic plastic debris. Here are the details you need to know.
Sponges That Trap Microplastics
Recent experiments showed that when a plastic-laden solution is pushed through these new sponges, they can capture microplastics and even smaller nanoplastics. The success of the sponges varied depending on liquid acidity, plastic concentration, and saltiness. However, under optimal conditions, 90% of microplastics were successfully removed. The sponges were also tested in everything from tap water and seawater to bowls of soup.
These new plastic-absorbing sponges are composed of starch and gelatin. They are fairly light, which makes them affordable and easy to transport. The interior of the sponge is more jagged, and tweaking the temperature at which the compounds to make it are mixed can make it more or less porous. This great adaptability allows scientists to make sponges that can capture particles of specific sizes. Amazing!
A Possible Boost for Wastewater Treatment
Scientists believe that the production of these sponges could be applied in wastewater treatment plants for filtering microplastics, or in food production for water decontamination. Other uses of this new invention could also become obvious in the future. After all, the sponge can trap microplastics within their pores when squeezed and released into water. This can even occur in still water.
While the new sponges offer significant promise, there are also some challenges that their makers have to face. For one, starch and gelatin, the key components of the sponges, are also used in the food industry. This means there will be competition for these ingredients. However, there are alternatives that can be explored that don’t face the same competition.
How Much Will it Cost?
It’s the million-dollar question, and we don’t have the answer to it yet. While a new sponge that clears microplastics sounds great, there is one critical aspect of the research that is still lacking, and that is evidence of the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of the new technologies on a large scale.
If they can be applied to prevent microplastics from reaching the ocean, that would reduce the need to remove them after they are already there. According to experts, while plants use existing technologies like sand or activated carbon filters to remove plastic, the sponge-based solution can be used for smaller-scale applications, such as purifying household water supplies. We look forward to seeing sponges in our toilet pipes in a few years!