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Biodegradable and re-usable sponge materials made from chitin for efficient removal of microplastics
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Researchers developed biodegradable sponges made from chitin, a natural material, that can effectively remove tiny microplastic particles smaller than 3 micrometers from water. The sponges achieved removal rates of up to 92% and could be reused for multiple cycles while remaining safe for aquatic organisms. This green approach offers a promising, environmentally friendly method for cleaning microplastics from water systems.
Microplastics have attracted widespread attention due to their detrimental effects on organisms, and their efficient removal poses great challenges, especially those smaller than 3 µm that are more harmful for aquatic biota. Herein, the chitin based sponges with interconnected pores, excellent elasticity and mechanical durability were fabricated and composed with graphene oxide (GO) and oxygen-doped carbon nitride (O-CN). The chitin based sponges could effectively remove different functionalized microplastics (~1 µm) at pH 6-8, including carboxylate-modified polystyrene (PS-COOH), amine-modified polystyrene (PS-NH), and polystyrene (PS). Notably, the removal efficiency of three microplastics by the chitin based sponges reached up to 71.6-92.1% at an environmentally relevant concentration of 1 mg L in water system. The potential driving forces of the adsorption were electrostatic interactions, hydrogen bond interactions, and π-π interactions. In addition, the chitin based sponges are reusable and after re-used for 3 cycles due to their excellent compressibility. The algae toxicity test demonstrated good biocompatibility of the chitin based sponges and they are also biodegradable in a natural soil. This study provides a green and promising method for fabricating environmentally friendly adsorbents for small-size microplastics removal, and expands the insights into the mechanisms of microplastic adsorption onto the sponge materials.
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Researchers developed a biodegradable sponge made from chitin and cellulose nanofibers that can remove up to 93% of microplastics from water. The sponge maintained strong performance after four reuse cycles and naturally biodegraded in soil environments. The study presents a sustainable, eco-friendly approach to cleaning microplastic contamination from aquatic ecosystems without introducing additional persistent pollutants.
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Scientists developed a sustainable material made from chitin and cellulose, two natural compounds, that can efficiently remove multiple types of microplastics from water. The material can be regenerated and reused multiple times without losing effectiveness, making it a practical tool for water cleanup. This type of affordable, eco-friendly filtration technology could help reduce human exposure to microplastics in drinking water.
Highly Efficient, Recyclable Microplastic Adsorption Enabled by Chitin Hydrogen Bond Network Rearrangement
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Scientists developed a foam made from chitin, a natural material found in seafood shells, that can absorb over 400 milligrams of nano-sized microplastics per gram of material, even in saltwater. This recyclable, sustainable approach could help clean microplastics from ocean water, and the recovered plastic can be converted into useful products.
Inherently Micro/Nano‐Patterned and Hydrophobic‐Hydrophilic Inlay Natural Material Assembly for Efficient Nanoplastics Removal
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Researchers developed an eco-friendly sponge made from natural pollen and chitin that can efficiently remove nanoplastics from contaminated water. The material achieved an adsorption capacity of over 236 milligrams per gram by combining hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties to attract and trap tiny plastic particles. The study demonstrates that nature-inspired materials could offer a sustainable and effective approach to cleaning nanoplastic pollution from wastewater.
High-Efficiency Adsorption of PS, PE, and PP Microplastics from Environmental Waters Using a Cross-Linked Chitosan/Graphitic Carbon Nitride/ZIF-67 Nanocomposite
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Scientists created a new sponge-like material that can pull tiny plastic particles (microplastics) out of wastewater with over 90% success, working in under 30 minutes and reusable for at least five cleaning cycles. This matters because microplastics from everyday sources like packaging and synthetic fabrics often slip through standard water treatment and end up in the water supply, so better filtering technology like this could help reduce our exposure to these particles before they reach drinking water or the environment.
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