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Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

physics-astronomy.org

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Re: Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

#21

Post by whatshisface »

jagannathtech wrote: post #13
wfjkwepofjpw wrote: post #9

I don't want to be dismissive, but I swear this headline like 100 times over the past 10 years. This, and "teen finds bacteria culture to digest plastic waste".

Honestly, almost every one of these 'teen finds...' story are very sensational and clickbaity. Eventually it turns out to be something already known, absolutely cannot scale, way too costly for any practical purpose, nothing related to the headline etc

This one is better than most because what he accomplished is a very good science fair project, and that's what he's being lauded for. The fact that it has some potential to be developed in to a real world solution is just icing on the cake.

Re: Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

#22

Post by mosselman »

abadar wrote: post #15
pmoriarty wrote: post #10

"Microplastics or microbeads are mostly used in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs to exfoliate skin..." So, wait... If we just stopped using microplastics in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs we'd mostly stop dumping microsplastics in to the environment? But we don't because we'd rather have this totally optional, cosmetic benefit? Humans are so stupid.

Ocean microplastics come from trash being beaten into tiny pieces by waves, wind, and radiation from sunlight, not really exfoliating beads, straws, or glitter.

Yes, because just before reaching the ocean all washing machine micro plastics hop out of the water and turn into a pot of gold. These pots are then brought to the ends of rainbows by leprechauns.

Re: Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

#23

Post by [deleted] »

carapace wrote: post #18

Tangent: I have a hunch that the Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube, or something based on it, could be used to separate or just concentrate microplastics from water. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex_tube > The vortex tube was used to separate gas mixtures, oxygen and nitrogen, carbon dioxide and helium, carbon dioxide and air in 1967 by Linderstrom-Lang. Vortex tubes also seem to work with liquids to some extent...

[deleted]

Re: Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

#24

Post by rangibaby »

pmoriarty wrote: post #10

"Microplastics or microbeads are mostly used in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs to exfoliate skin..." So, wait... If we just stopped using microplastics in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs we'd mostly stop dumping microsplastics in to the environment? But we don't because we'd rather have this totally optional, cosmetic benefit? Humans are so stupid.

AFAIK Most micro plastics come from your washing machine’s water every time you wash something with plastic in it

Re: Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

#25

Post by jazzyjackson »

carapace wrote: post #18

Tangent: I have a hunch that the Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube, or something based on it, could be used to separate or just concentrate microplastics from water. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex_tube > The vortex tube was used to separate gas mixtures, oxygen and nitrogen, carbon dioxide and helium, carbon dioxide and air in 1967 by Linderstrom-Lang. Vortex tubes also seem to work with liquids to some extent...

Like a constant flow centrifuge, amazing ... but water is not so compressible, will it separate out based on dissolved solids effecting the density of the solution? It could be used to reduce salinity in that case, no?

I would think if no ones figured out desalination via vortex, filtering otherwise seems unlikely

Re: Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

#26

Post by trickstra »

abadar wrote: post #15
pmoriarty wrote: post #10

"Microplastics or microbeads are mostly used in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs to exfoliate skin..." So, wait... If we just stopped using microplastics in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs we'd mostly stop dumping microsplastics in to the environment? But we don't because we'd rather have this totally optional, cosmetic benefit? Humans are so stupid.

Ocean microplastics come from trash being beaten into tiny pieces by waves, wind, and radiation from sunlight, not really exfoliating beads, straws, or glitter.

Source please.

Only the pieces that are visible enough to be still recognizable make it into photos in news articles. The real data is very different, especially when you are looking for the micrometer-sized plastics that end up killing fish or getting into bottled water.

Also I noticed the term "microplastics" is used for two different things - one are fragments of plastic size 1-5cm, the other is the size of glitter particles and smaller. It is the second one that's more of a concern.

Re: Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

#27

Post by cududa »

carapace wrote: post #18

Tangent: I have a hunch that the Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube, or something based on it, could be used to separate or just concentrate microplastics from water. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex_tube > The vortex tube was used to separate gas mixtures, oxygen and nitrogen, carbon dioxide and helium, carbon dioxide and air in 1967 by Linderstrom-Lang. Vortex tubes also seem to work with liquids to some extent...

In extremely focused on under ground pumped hydro energy storage using derelict mines as core infrastructure, and I think you just gave me a very big idea. Any interest in discussing this concept?

Re: Irish Teenager Wins Global Science Award for Removing Microplastics from Water

#28

Post by forgotmypw »

pmoriarty wrote: post #10

"Microplastics or microbeads are mostly used in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs to exfoliate skin..." So, wait... If we just stopped using microplastics in soaps, shower gels and facial scrubs we'd mostly stop dumping microsplastics in to the environment? But we don't because we'd rather have this totally optional, cosmetic benefit? Humans are so stupid.

It's one of the many, many sources of microplastics. Others include:

Anything made of plastic, because it deteriorates over time.

Tires with synthetic threads, as another HN poster mentioned recently.

Plastic shoes (most shoes in western world)

Glitter and car paint

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