IISc Designed a Hydrogel to Remove Microplastics from Water

Utkarsh Classes Last Updated 15-04-2024

Science 3 min read

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have created a sustainable hydrogel to tackle the issue of plastic pollution.

The hydrogel has a unique polymer network that can bind and degrade microplastics found in water using UV light irradiation.
Microplastics are tiny particles of plastic that are less than 5 millimetres in size and have spread across the planet, from oceans to mountains. These tiny particles can enter our bodies through the water we drink, posing a serious threat to our health.
Although scientists have attempted to eliminate microplastics through filtering membranes, the membranes tend to become clogged with the particles, making them unsustainable.
As a result, the IISc team led by Professor Suryasarathi Bose, from the Department of Materials Engineering, turned to 3D hydrogels as a solution.

About hydrogel discovery

Microplastics are small pieces of plastic that are less than five millimetres long and can cause harm to our oceans and aquatic life.
A team of researchers has developed a hydrogel made up of three different polymer layers: chitosan, polyvinyl alcohol, and polyaniline.
This hydrogel has the ability to adsorb and degrade large amounts of microplastics. The team infused the hydrogel with nanoclusters of a material called copper substitute polyoxometalate (Cu-POM), which are catalysts that can use UV light to degrade microplastics.
The scientists crushed plastic lids and other common household items to make two types of microplastics found in nature: polyvinyl chloride and polypropylene.The hydrogel was highly efficient, removing about 95% and 93% of the two types of microplastics in water at near-neutral pH (∼6.5).
The scientists used a special coloring agent on the small plastic particles to keep track of how much of it was absorbed and broken down by a type of gel in different conditions.
Once the hydrogel has reached the end of its usefulness, it can be repurposed into carbon nanomaterials that are capable of removing heavy metals from polluted water.
The researchers plan to develop a device that can be deployed on a large scale to help clean up microplastics from various water sources.