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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Water hyacinth-inspired self-floating photocatalytic system for efficient and sustainable water purification
ClearPhytoremediation of microplastics by water hyacinth
Researchers found that water hyacinth, a fast-growing floating plant, can remove 55-69% of microplastics from contaminated water within 48 hours through root adsorption. The plant's massive root surface area traps plastic particles, while a special structure in the stem prevents the plastics from reaching the leaves. This study offers a promising natural, low-cost approach to cleaning microplastics from waterways.
Tracing and trapping micro- and nanoplastics: Untapped mitigation potential of aquatic plants?
Researchers used fluorescently labeled polystyrene particles to trace microplastic and nanoplastic uptake in three aquatic plant species, finding that nanoplastics concentrated primarily in roots via apoplastic transport with bioconcentration factors up to 306, suggesting floating plants like water hyacinth may be useful for removing plastic from contaminated water.
Quick-Release Antifouling Hydrogels for Solar-Driven Water Purification
Scientists created a loofah-inspired hydrogel material that uses sunlight to purify contaminated water at a rate of about 26 kilograms per square meter per hour, enough to meet daily drinking water needs. The material resists fouling and can produce clean water from various contaminated sources including those containing microplastics and heavy metals. This solar-powered approach offers a sustainable, off-grid solution for water purification in areas lacking conventional infrastructure.
Water hyacinths retain river plastics
Researchers investigated how water hyacinths, an invasive aquatic plant common in tropical rivers, interact with floating plastic debris. They found that dense water hyacinth patches efficiently trap surface plastics, potentially influencing whether plastic waste reaches the ocean. The study suggests that while water hyacinths are typically considered a nuisance species, they may play an unintended role in retaining river plastics.
Rhus Chinensis ‐ Inspired Vertical Hierarchical Structure for Solar ‐ Driven All ‐ Weather Co ‐ Harvesting of Fresh Water, Clean Salts, and Authigenic Electricity
Researchers developed a plant-inspired device that uses solar energy to simultaneously produce fresh water, recover clean salt, and generate electricity from seawater. The system includes a built-in pollutant capture trap that removes contaminants including microplastics and persistent organic pollutants from the recovered salt. This innovative approach to resource recovery from seawater could help address water scarcity while preventing microplastic contamination in salt products.
Evaluating The Potential of Hibiscus Rosa-Sinensis in Floating Wetland for The Remediation of Water Bodies Polluted with Domestic Sewage
Researchers evaluated the effectiveness of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis plants in floating wetland systems for treating domestic wastewater. The study found that this tropical ornamental plant was able to reduce various pollutant levels in contaminated water through natural remediation processes. The study suggests that floating wetland systems using readily available plants could offer a low-cost solution for improving water quality in regions lacking formal wastewater treatment infrastructure.
New Method of Fabricating Carbon Materials via Uptake of Nanoplastics into Eichhornia crassipes for Enhancing Supercapacitance
Researchers used water hyacinth plants that had absorbed polystyrene nanoplastics as a raw material to produce high-performance carbon electrodes for energy storage. While the study is primarily about materials engineering, it demonstrates a novel approach to removing nanoplastics from water using plants and converting the contaminated biomass into a useful product, potentially addressing two environmental problems at once.
A low-impact nature-based solution for reducing aquatic microplastics from freshwater ecosystems
Researchers developed a nature-based solution using the submerged plant Myriophyllum aquaticum to capture and retain microplastics from freshwater ecosystems. Through optimization experiments, they achieved high retention efficiency with minimal environmental disruption. The study demonstrates that aquatic plants can serve as a low-impact, practical tool for reducing microplastic pollution in rivers and lakes.
Capillary Skimming Floating Microplastics via a Water-Bridged Ratchet
Researchers designed a water-bridged ratchet device that can skim floating microplastics from the water surface using capillary forces, avoiding the mesh-clogging problems that hamper conventional filters. This novel approach could enable more effective removal of floating microplastic pollution from water surfaces.
A Self-Regulating Shuttle for Autonomous Seek and Destroy of Microplastics from Wastewater
Researchers developed a buoyancy-driven hybrid hydrogel that functions as a self-regulating shuttle for autonomous microplastic removal from wastewater, using thermally switchable buoyancy to cyclically transport captured contaminants from the seabed to the water surface for photocatalytic degradation without external intervention.
Plastic plants: Water hyacinths as driver of plastic transport in tropical rivers
Researchers studied how water hyacinth plants act as drivers of plastic transport in tropical freshwater rivers, finding that the floating plants aggregate and carry large quantities of plastic debris. Understanding this mechanism is important for predicting and intercepting plastic before it reaches the ocean as microplastics.
Microplastic detection and remediation through efficient interfacial solar evaporation for immaculate water production
Researchers developed a solar-powered water purification system that simultaneously produces clean water and removes microplastics, achieving up to 5.5 times better microplastic removal than previous methods. The system uses sunlight to evaporate water, leaving contaminants including microplastics behind. This dual-purpose technology could help address both water scarcity and microplastic pollution, ultimately reducing human exposure through drinking water.
Design of clean energy based microplastic collection device
Researchers developed a clean energy-powered microplastic collection device designed to capture plastic particles smaller than 5 mm from aquatic environments, leveraging the chemical stability and persistence of microplastics as a design challenge.
Hierarchical MXene Hydrogel Evaporators with Self‐Regulating Water‐Thermal Management for High‐Efficiency Removal of Multipollutants via Solar‐Energy Utilization
Engineers designed a solar-powered water purification device using MXene nanomaterials that can remove up to 99% of microplastics from water while also filtering out heavy metals and killing bacteria. The device converts sunlight into heat to evaporate and purify contaminated water, and it remains effective even after exposure to extreme cold and UV aging. This technology could provide a low-cost way to produce clean drinking water in areas affected by microplastic pollution.
A field guide for monitoring riverine macroplastic entrapment in water hyacinths
Researchers developed a field guide for monitoring how floating water hyacinths trap and transport plastic debris in rivers, providing a practical tool for studying plastic transport pathways. Water hyacinths may act as important accumulators of plastic litter that would otherwise reach the ocean as microplastics.
Concave microlens arrays with tunable curvature for enhanced photodegradation of organic pollutants in water: A non‐contact approach
Researchers designed reusable concave microlens arrays (MLAs) that focus sunlight to boost solar photodegradation of organic pollutants in water by 5.1-fold, even under low light and in turbid river water. This is not directly about microplastics; it is a water treatment technology study targeting dissolved organic pollutants, making it a false positive for microplastic relevance.
Photocatalytic Degradation of Microplastics in Aquatic Environments: Materials, Mechanisms, Practical Challenges, and Future Perspectives
This review examines how light-activated materials called photocatalysts can break down microplastics in water into harmless byproducts using sunlight or UV light. While still facing challenges with incomplete breakdown and variable sunlight conditions, this technology offers a promising way to reduce microplastic contamination in water sources that affect human health.
Waste Plastic Recycling Upgrade Design Nanogenerator for Catalytic Degradation of Pollutants
Researchers converted plastic waste into nanogenerator components capable of driving the catalytic breakdown of water pollutants using ambient water flow energy. The approach demonstrates a creative way to both repurpose plastic waste and develop sustainable water treatment technologies.
Hierarchically Structured Hydrogel Actuator for Microplastic Pollutant Detection and Removal
Researchers developed a smart hydrogel actuator that can both detect and physically remove microplastic compound pollutants from water using light-driven movement. The device integrates hierarchical polymer networks that enable it to sense contamination and autonomously collect microplastic particles. The study demonstrates a novel approach to addressing aquatic microplastic pollution through self-powered soft robotics that combine sensing and remediation in a single material.
Development and evaluation of a water treatment system for the removal of microplastics in an aqueous medium.
Researchers developed and evaluated a water treatment system for removing microplastics from aqueous media, addressing the urgent environmental concern of microplastic contamination in rivers, seas, and oceans and assessing the system's effectiveness as a promising water purification technology.
Innovative prototype for the mitigation of water pollution from microplastics to safeguard the environment and health
Researchers developed an innovative prototype device for removing microplastics from water through a combination of filtration and electrocoagulation, demonstrating high MP removal efficiency from both synthetic and real water samples in controlled trials.
Proposal of Invader Pontederia crassipes as a Savior of Micro and Macro Size Plastic Pollution
This study was the first to evaluate microplastic and macroplastic capture potential of the invasive water hyacinth, finding 3,691 particles in the roots of 12 specimens, with fragments dominating. The results suggest this widely distributed invasive plant may passively accumulate plastic particles from aquatic environments.
Octopus-like biomass-based flocculant for broad-spectrum water purification
Researchers developed a novel biomass-based flocculant shaped like an octopus that can remove a wide range of water contaminants in a single treatment step. The material, built from lignin with multiple functional arms, effectively captured microplastics, heavy metals, organic dyes, and other pollutants that conventional flocculants struggle to address. The approach offers a more efficient and environmentally friendly alternative for water purification.
A biomass-derived, all-day-round solar evaporation platform for harvesting clean water from microplastic pollution
A three-dimensional biomass-derived photothermal platform with gradient microchannels was developed to accelerate solar-driven water evaporation and simultaneously degrade microplastics. The system achieved all-day-round evaporation by combining solar energy harvesting with photocatalytic microplastic breakdown.