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Future Perspectives of Microplastic towards Environmental Assessment
Summary
This perspective paper reviewed the current state of microplastic research and outlined future priorities for environmental assessment, including standardized monitoring frameworks, better understanding of nanoplastics, and integration of microplastic data into regulatory risk assessment. It called for a more coordinated global research agenda.
Microplastic (MP) pollution is an outcome of the widespread use of non-biodegradable plastic and improper disposal. This leads to contamination of environmental resources, such as landfills, and all kinds of water reservoirs including but not limited to sea, fresh water, drinking water, and even wastewater. Recent reports have highlighted the presence of MPs in the human body, including blood, lungs, placentas, and breast milk, indicating the severity of the issue. It is thus crucial to eliminate these hazardous contaminants from the environment. One of the effective methods to address the concern while reducing the adverse effects is to remove the MPs at their discharge points. Nanomaterials with exceptional properties like high surface area, ease of functionalization, and high affinity toward various pollutants act as excellent adsorbents. In this chapter, we present an overview of emerging nanomaterial-based adsorbents, such as photocatalysts, metal-organic frameworks, carbon-based nanomaterials, and nanocomposites, for effective removal of MPs from aqueous media via adsorption, photo-catalysis, and membrane filtration. However, considering that the research in the area of MP pollution is still in its infant stage, we aim to provide a brief account of the strengths, weaknesses, and future research dimensions of nanomaterial-based adsorbents for removing MPs from aqueous media.