0
Article Tier 2 Environmental Sources Human Health Effects Sign in to save

An integrated chemical engineering approach to understanding microplastics

AIChE Journal 2023 21 citations

AI summary Read the abstract

Researchers proposed an integrated chemical engineering approach combining artificial intelligence, theoretical methods, and experimental techniques to better understand microplastic properties and behavior. The study suggests that the broad scope of chemical engineering makes it well-suited for characterizing microplastics and addressing the complexity of their environmental and health effects.

Abstract Environmental and health risks posed by microplastics (MPs) have spurred numerous studies to better understand MPs' properties and behavior. Yet, we still lack a comprehensive understanding due to MP's heterogeneity in properties and complexity of plastic property evolution during aging processes. There is an urgent need to thoroughly understand the properties and behavior of MPs as there is increasing evidence of MPs' adverse health and environmental effects. In this perspective, we propose an integrated chemical engineering approach to improve our understanding of MPs. The approach merges artificial intelligence, theoretical methods, and experimental techniques to integrate existing data into models of MPs, investigate unknown features of MPs, and identify future areas of research. The breadth of chemical engineering, which spans biological, computational, and materials sciences, makes it well‐suited to comprehensively characterize MPs. Ultimately, this perspective charts a path for cross‐disciplinary collaborative research in chemical engineering to address the issue of MP pollution.

More Papers Like This

Article Tier 2

Integrating Multi-Omics and Machine Learning to Predict Microplastic Cytotoxicity Under Strict Leave-One-Polymer-Out Validation

AI summary Read the abstract

Scientists used AI to predict how toxic different types of microplastics are to human lung cells, based on their chemical makeup. This matters because not all plastics are equally harmful, and this approach could help researchers flag risky plastics faster, without needing to test every single one in the lab.

Article Tier 2

The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Microplastic Pollution Studies and Management

AI summary Read the abstract

This review explores how artificial intelligence is transforming microplastic research, from automating detection in microscopy images and spectral analysis to predicting how plastics interact with pollutants and living organisms. AI-powered sensors and real-time monitoring systems are also being integrated into wastewater treatment to reduce microplastic release, making the technology a powerful tool for both understanding and managing plastic pollution.

Article Tier 2

Predicting the toxicity of microplastic particles through machine learning models

AI summary Read the abstract

Researchers applied machine learning models to predict the toxicity of microplastic particles from their physical and chemical properties, addressing the challenge that microplastics lack the standardized identifiers used for chemical hazard classification. The models successfully predicted toxicity outcomes from particle descriptors, offering a framework for hazard screening of the diverse and complex microplastic contaminant class.

Article Tier 2

AI‐Driven Technologies in Mitigation of Microplastic Pollution

AI summary Read the abstract

Researchers reviewed how AI-assisted detection methods address the accuracy, efficiency, and cost limitations of traditional microplastic identification, while also surveying how artificial intelligence is being applied to model and mitigate microplastic impacts on marine ecosystems and human health including metabolic and respiratory effects.

Article Tier 2

Using artificial intelligence to rapidly identify microplastics pollution and predict microplastics environmental behaviors

AI summary Read the abstract

This review summarizes how artificial intelligence and machine learning are being used to identify, track, and predict the environmental behavior of microplastics in soil and water. AI methods can analyze the chemical composition, shape, and distribution of microplastics faster and more accurately than traditional techniques. The technology could help scientists better understand where microplastics accumulate and what risks they pose to ecosystems and human health.

Research digests by email

When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.

Email me about

Share this paper