Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

From Trash to Fashion: Understanding Wearable Art as Environmental Activism

This paper examines wearable art projects that incorporate plastic waste as a form of environmental activism and material rhetoric, arguing that fashioning trash into garments makes ecological crises tangible and challenges consumer culture through aesthetic engagement.

2025 Spectrum of art.
Article Tier 2

Upcycling Systems Design, Developing a Methodology through Design

This paper proposes a new methodology for upcycling systems design that bridges circular economy business models with sustainable material innovation, aiming to reduce the environmental impact of products by integrating ecological considerations early in the design process.

2022 Sustainability 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Exploration of Interior Material Based on Plastic Waste

Researchers explored the potential for plastic waste to be transformed into interior design materials, using observation, interviews, and documentation methods to analyze the process from material collection through fabrication. The study characterized the physical and chemical properties of plastic waste relevant to its use as an interior material and assessed structural strength alongside its environmental risks.

2022 Proceeding of International Conference on Business Economics Social Sciences and Humanities 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Leveraging Insights from Unique Artifacts for Creating Sustainable Products

This paper examines how the design principles found in unique historical artifacts can inspire sustainable manufacturing approaches within a circular economy. Designing products for longevity, repairability, and end-of-life recyclability can reduce plastic waste and the microplastics generated from product disposal.

2023 Lecture notes in mechanical engineering
Review Tier 2

Review of sustainable temporary housing and reuse strategy for post-disaster architectures: current trends and strategic gaps

This review analyzes current trends in sustainable temporary housing designed for disaster recovery, focusing on reuse strategies that minimize waste and environmental impact. While not directly about microplastics, the study addresses the broader challenge of reducing construction waste and plastic materials that contribute to environmental pollution. The authors identify gaps in current research and highlight the need for designs that balance emergency housing needs with long-term ecological sustainability.

2025 Journal of Engineering and Applied Science 8 citations
Article Tier 2

A critical review of the current progress of plastic waste recycling technology in structural materials

Researchers reviewed technologies for recycling plastic waste into construction materials such as concrete and asphalt, finding this approach can meaningfully reduce the environmental burden of plastic pollution. Incorporating plastic waste into building materials offers a practical path toward both waste reduction and more sustainable construction.

2023 Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry 210 citations
Article Tier 2

Using Plastic Wastes in Construction: Opportunities and Challenges

This review examines the opportunities and challenges of incorporating plastic waste into construction materials, motivated by rapid urbanization and a pandemic-driven surge in plastic waste generation. The study evaluates technical performance, sustainability trade-offs, and regulatory considerations for using recycled plastics as building materials.

2022 EPiC series in built environment 14 citations
Article Tier 2

A Survey on Use of Non-Recyclable Waste in Construction

This survey reviews strategies for incorporating non-recyclable plastic waste into construction materials, documenting the environmental threat posed by plastic waste in marine ecosystems and its effects on wildlife and human health. The authors conclude that using plastic waste as a component in cementitious composites offers the most promising avenue for improving environmental sustainability while providing a practical construction material.

2022 International Journal for Research in Applied Science and Engineering Technology
Article Tier 2

The Art of (Up)Recycling: How Plastic Debris Has Become a Matter of Art?

This art and culture paper examines how contemporary artists have used plastic waste as a medium, exploring how art can communicate environmental concerns about plastic pollution to the public. The work documents artistic responses to the global plastic crisis. While not a scientific study, art-based approaches are relevant to raising public awareness about microplastic contamination and motivating behavioral change.

2021 Advances in Environmental and Engineering Research 3 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Systematic Review of Plastic Waste as Eco-Friendly Aggregate for Sustainable Construction

This systematic review examines how recycled plastic waste can be used as a substitute for traditional aggregates in concrete and construction materials. Using plastic waste in construction could divert it from landfills and waterways where it breaks down into microplastics. The review evaluates the structural performance and environmental benefits of incorporating plastic into building materials.

2022 International Journal of Sustainable Construction Engineering Technology 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Waste Journeys

This multidisciplinary study examined plastic waste as a material of the Anthropocene by tracing the journeys of plastic objects across cultural, natural, marine, and terrestrial landscapes, exploring how plastic's resilience makes it a defining and problematic artifact of modern civilization.

2023 Journal of Contemporary Archaeology 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastiglomerates, Microplastics, Nanoplastics

This essay explores the cultural and ecological meaning of plastic pollution through art and speculative design, examining how plastics have become embedded in every environment including the human body. It argues that understanding plastic as part of a 'dark ecology' is essential for rethinking our relationship with synthetic materials.

2020 Performance Research 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Societal Relations to Nature in Times of Crisis—Social Ecology’s Contributions to Interdisciplinary Sustainability Studies

This review article examined how social ecology — an interdisciplinary field — approaches the crisis of societal relationships with nature, including climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. It provides theoretical frameworks relevant to understanding why plastic pollution persists despite growing awareness of its harms.

2017 Sustainability 27 citations
Article Tier 2

An Ecosystem of Excess

This art and design project explores the concept of an "ecosystem of excess," examining how consumerism and the Anthropocene have created environments saturated with synthetic materials. While artistic rather than scientific, the work engages themes of plastic waste and its environmental legacy.

2020 Ecocene Cappadocia Journal of Environmental Humanities Cappadocia University 3 citations
Article Tier 2

An Analysis of the State-of-the-art in Plastic Scrap Recycling Strategies for Construction Components

This review examines strategies for recycling plastic waste in construction applications, covering methods to convert plastic scraps into building components and discussing barriers including contamination, mixed polymer streams, and regulatory restrictions on plastic use in structural applications.

2025
Review Tier 2

A Review of the Roots of Ecological Engineering and its Principles

This review traces the historical roots and guiding principles of ecological engineering, a multidisciplinary field focused on designing sustainable ecosystems and restoring degraded natural habitats. The study highlights how ecological engineering integrates scientific knowledge with practical applications to address environmental challenges including pollution and habitat loss.

2023 Journal of Ecological Engineering 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Un/Making the Plastic Straw: Designerly Inquiries into Disposability

This study uses design research methods to investigate the cultural and material life of plastic straws, examining how disposability is engineered and normalized in consumer products. The authors explore how design practices contribute to single-use plastic culture and how they might be reimagined to reduce waste.

2023 Design and Culture 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Design of an Urban Domestic Waste Landfill Based on Aerial Image Segmentation and Ecological Restoration Theory

This paper proposes a method combining aerial image segmentation with ecological restoration principles to design better urban landfills. Improved landfill design reduces plastic waste leakage into surrounding environments, where it can fragment into microplastics that enter waterways.

2023 Applied Sciences 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Lessons from the junk drawer: Possibilities for sustainability in art education

This art education essay argues that the materials used in artistic creation matter for developing eco-consciousness in students. Using the metaphor of a junk drawer, the author advocates for sustainable art materials as a way to connect learners to ecological issues raised by the climate crisis.

2023 McGill Journal of Education / Revue des sciences de l éducation de McGill
Article Tier 2

An Examination of Microplastics: Environmental Impact, Sustainability, and Recyclability Innovation

This paper examined the environmental impact of microplastics, sustainability implications of current plastic use, and recycling options to address the plastic pollution crisis. It called for a transition toward circular economy approaches that reduce primary plastic production and increase recycled content.

2024 Journal of Student Research
Article Tier 2

Societal impact of recycling waste into composite materials

This review examines how recycling various types of waste, including plastics, into composite materials can reduce environmental pollution and support a circular economy. Researchers surveyed methods for transforming plastic waste, agricultural residues, and industrial byproducts into useful construction and engineering materials. The study highlights that waste-derived composites can offer comparable performance to conventional materials while significantly reducing the environmental footprint of waste disposal.

2024 Societal Impacts 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Circular economy model for reuse of plastic in eco-efficient production of building materials

This study explored using plastic waste in the production of construction blocks and bricks as part of a circular economy approach, reducing the amount of plastic that enters the environment as microplastics. The construction sector offers a significant opportunity to valorize plastic waste as a durable material rather than allowing it to degrade in landfills.

2023 Journal of business and entrepreneurial studie 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Research on Application of Environmental Protection Concept in Modern Product Design

This paper explores how principles of environmental sustainability are being integrated into modern product design, examining how green design concepts can reduce ecological impact while meeting consumer needs. The analysis calls for applying low-carbon, circular economy values throughout the product development process.

2023 Highlights in Art and Design
Article Tier 2

Agential Realism in Architecture: Exploring Matter and Meaning

This paper applied Karen Barad's theory of agential realism to architecture, exploring how designers and materials — including wood, brick, and plastic — co-create meaning and form through dynamic intra-action, with implications for responsibility in the built environment.

2023