Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

The quest for seafloor macrolitter: a critical review of background knowledge, current methods and future prospects

This critical review examined knowledge, current practices, and challenges in studying macrolitter on the seafloor, the least-investigated sink for marine debris. The seafloor covers 70% of Earth's surface and receives substantial plastic input, yet most of it lies in the deep sea where monitoring is technically difficult and expensive.

2020 Environmental Research Letters 164 citations
Article Tier 2

Beach Cleaning Robots a Comprehensive Survey of Technologies Challenges, and Future Directions

This paper is not relevant to microplastics; it is a survey of robotic technologies and methodologies for automated beach cleaning and litter removal.

2023 International Research Journal of Modernization in Engineering Technology and Science 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Mapping of marine litter on the seafloor using WASSP S3 multibeam echo sounder and Chasing M2 ROV

Researchers tested multibeam sonar and a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) to map marine litter on the seafloor of a Croatian channel, finding the ROV effective for shallow-water debris detection but limited without proper navigation aids. This work advances techniques for locating plastic debris hotspots on the seabed, which is important because seafloor litter — including microplastic precursors — is largely invisible and understudied.

2023 Frontiers in Earth Science 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Development of Garbage Collecting Robot for Marine Microplastics

Researchers developed a garbage-collecting robot designed to remove plastic debris from coastal areas before it degrades into microplastics, addressing the logistical challenge of cleaning extensive shorelines with minimal human labor and resources.

2025 The Proceedings of JSME annual Conference on Robotics and Mechatronics (Robomec)
Article Tier 2

Cleaning up the world’s oceans with underwater laser imaging

Researchers proposed using underwater LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) technology to detect and map submerged plastic debris in the oceans, arguing this approach offers higher resolution and greater safety for marine life compared to sonar, and could enable targeted cleanup of the estimated 70% of ocean plastic that lies below the surface.

2023 Journal of Emerging Investigators 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Development of Garbage Collecting Robot for Marine Microplastics

Researchers designed and developed an autonomous cleaning robot for collecting marine microplastics scattered on beaches, using a conveyor belt and tray system to mechanically gather and retain small plastic particles. The study addresses the practical difficulty of manually collecting dispersed microplastics and demonstrates the robot's configuration and operational concept for beach remediation.

2024 The Proceedings of JSME annual Conference on Robotics and Mechatronics (Robomec)
Review Tier 2

A Review of Recent Advances in Microplastic Research and ROVs to Aid the Development of an Integrated Solution for Microplastic Pollution

This review examines recent advances in microplastic detection and filtration research alongside remotely operated vehicle (ROV) technology, with the goal of developing integrated solutions for microplastic pollution in aquatic environments. Researchers found that combining advanced detection methods with underwater robotic platforms offers a promising pathway for real-world microplastic monitoring and removal, particularly in deep or inaccessible marine and freshwater systems.

2025 International Journal for Research in Applied Science and Engineering Technology
Article Tier 2

Development of Garbage Collecting Robot for Marine Microplastics

This paper describes the design of a robot intended to collect microplastics from beaches, addressing the practical challenge that hand collection of scattered, tiny plastic particles is impractical at scale. Laboratory experiments characterized how sand behaves under the robot's excavation mechanism, providing engineering data for building autonomous marine microplastic cleanup devices.

2024 3 citations
Article Tier 2

A Comparison of new and age-old approaches treating microplastics in the marine environment

This review compares existing and emerging technologies for removing, recycling, or degrading microplastics in the ocean, concluding that current approaches remain insufficient to address the scale of marine plastic pollution.

2024 Applied and Computational Engineering
Article Tier 2

A Spiral-Propulsion Amphibious Intelligent Robot for Land Garbage Cleaning and Sea Garbage Cleaning

Not relevant to microplastics research; this paper presents the design and testing of an amphibious robot capable of collecting garbage from beaches, tidal flats, and the ocean surface, but does not analyze microplastic pollution specifically.

2023 Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 13 citations
Review Tier 2

Up-to-Date Scoping Review of Object Detection Methods for Macro Marine Debris

This review examines over two decades of research into object detection methods for identifying macro marine debris, with a focus on deep learning advances made in the past five years. Following PRISMA-ScR guidelines, the authors assessed current techniques and identified key progress and remaining gaps in automated marine litter identification systems.

2025 Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
Article Tier 2

Marine Litter, Plastic, and Microplastics on the Seafloor

This review examines marine litter, plastic debris, and microplastics accumulating on the seafloor from intertidal zones to hadal depths, emphasizing that the seafloor is a major long-term sink for plastics denser than seawater. It discusses monitoring challenges across different seabed types and highlights abandoned fishing gear as a key seafloor litter component that entangles marine fauna.

2022 16 citations
Article Tier 2

An Overview of the Current Trends in Marine Plastic Litter Management for a Sustainable Development

This review summarizes current knowledge about marine plastic litter, from its land-based origins to its distribution across ocean environments, and evaluates recovery and recycling strategies. Researchers found that while technologies for collecting and recycling marine plastics are advancing, significant economic and logistical barriers remain. The study emphasizes that a circular economy approach, combining prevention, collection, and material recovery, is essential for addressing ocean plastic pollution.

2024 Recycling 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution in marine environments: An in-depth analysis of advanced monitoring techniques, removal technologies, and future challenges

This review provides a comprehensive analysis of microplastic pollution in marine environments, covering sources, ecological impacts, and current monitoring and removal technologies. Researchers examined physical, chemical, and biological methods for microplastic detection and cleanup, including filtration, separation, and hybrid approaches. The study concludes that while progress has been made, significant gaps remain in our ability to effectively monitor and remove microplastics from ocean ecosystems.

2025 Marine Environmental Research 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Automatic Beach Cleaning Robot

Researchers designed a portable automatic beach cleaning robot for collecting plastic debris from sandy beaches to reduce marine pollution and protect aquatic ecosystems.

2023 INTERANTIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN ENGINEERING AND MANAGEMENT
Article Tier 2

Aquatic Trash Detection and Classification: a Machine Learning and Deep Learning Perspective

This review examines machine learning and deep learning approaches for detecting and classifying aquatic trash in waterways, evaluating how computer vision algorithms trained on underwater and surface imagery can automate pollution monitoring for faster, more scalable ocean cleanup.

2025 International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer Science
Systematic Review Tier 1

Exploring the Potential of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles for Microplastic Detection in Marine Environments: A Systematic Review

This systematic review explores how autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) could be used to detect microplastics in the ocean in real time, replacing slower traditional sampling methods. While promising, the technology is still developing and faces challenges with sensor accuracy and deep-water operation. Better detection tools like these could help scientists understand how widespread microplastic contamination really is in marine environments.

2025 Drones
Article Tier 2

The Current and Prospective State of Microplastic Contamination in the Marine Ecosystem

This review assesses the current state of microplastic contamination research in marine ecosystems, identifying strengths and gaps in published literature and recommending new focus areas including marine polymer degradation, advanced sampling methods, and the consequences of research-generated microplastic pollution.

2023 Journal of Science Innovations and Nature of Earth
Article Tier 2

Assessment of marine litter through remote sensing: recent approaches and future goals

This review classified remote sensing approaches for detecting marine litter — including satellite, aircraft, and drone platforms with optical, infrared, and radar sensors — finding that few studies had reached operational status and that detecting small or submerged litter remains a major technical challenge.

2021 Marine Pollution Bulletin 112 citations
Article Tier 2

Unmanned Vehicles System Utilizing Waste Tracking Data to Tackle Plastic Marine Littering on Tourist Islands

This paper proposes using unmanned vehicles guided by waste tracking data to collect plastic marine litter around tourist islands. Autonomous cleanup technology could help remove plastic debris before it breaks down into microplastics and enters the food chain.

2021 1 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Exploring the Potential of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles for Microplastic Detection in Marine Environments: A Review

This review explores how autonomous underwater vehicles equipped with sensors could detect microplastics directly in the ocean, rather than relying on labor-intensive water sampling. Current detection methods are slow and expensive, making real-time monitoring difficult. Advances in onboard sensing technology could dramatically improve our understanding of where microplastics concentrate in marine environments.

2025 Preprints.org
Article Tier 2

Marine Sediment Sampling With an Underwater Legged Robot: A User-Driven Sampling Approach for Microplastic Analysis

Researchers developed a novel marine sediment sampling system using an underwater legged robot designed specifically for microplastic assessment studies. The system was built to meet the requirements of marine biologists, allowing precise sediment collection at controlled depths with minimal disturbance, enabling more reliable and repeatable microplastic sampling in underwater environments.

2024 IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Marine litter, future prospects for research

This review traces the history of marine litter research and identifies key unanswered questions about the ultimate fate and distribution of plastic waste in the ocean. The authors highlight that understanding where plastic eventually ends up — whether on the seafloor, in deep-sea trenches, or in organisms — remains one of the central challenges in marine pollution science.

2015 Frontiers in Marine Science 98 citations
Article Tier 2

Artificial intelligence for modeling and reducing microplastic in marine environments: A review of current evidence

This review examines how artificial intelligence is being applied to address marine microplastic pollution, including modeling accumulation zones, developing real-time detection systems using remote sensing and robotics, and creating AI-based filtration technologies. The study suggests that while AI holds significant promise for predicting microplastic flows and supporting targeted cleanup efforts, challenges remain around data availability, model refinement, and international collaboration.

2026 Marine Pollution Bulletin