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Key examples of nanotechnology in microplastics, packaging and textiles

Portuguese National Funding Agency for Science, Research and Technology (RCAAP Project by FCT) 2026
Carsten Gellermann, Karl-Heinz Haas, Christian Hagendorf, Andreas Luch, Paul-Tiberiu Miclea, Stefan Schiessl, Holger Sieg, Ferdinand Somorowsky, Harald Rune Tschiche, Günter Tovar, :unav

Summary

This review examines nanotechnology's contributions to characterizing and addressing microplastics, developing sustainable packaging, and improving textile materials, positioning nanoscale material design as a cross-cutting enabler for sustainability challenges. Nanotechnology-based detection and remediation approaches — including nano-adsorbents and engineered membranes — represent a frontier in microplastic removal from water and food systems, directly advancing the field.

Nanotechnology is a powerful technological basis for the design of materials for various areas of application. It is becoming increasingly important in our complex world and a growing number of applications are proving its high-performance capacity on a regular basis. Today, its unique ability to define materials and structures at the nanometer scale opens up new opportunities to tackle some of the most pressing challenges. In this review, we discuss key examples of nanotechnology's contributions to microplastics, packaging and textiles, all three of which have proven to be omnipresent and particularly transformative. We present current approaches to characterizing and addressing the challenge of microplastics, explain concepts of sustainable packaging solutions and demonstrate the applicability of improved textile materials. In all three areas, key examples will be given of how nanotechnology as an enabling technology can pave the way to a more sustainable and technologically advanced future.

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