Project Info
Microplastics in the environment
Kim Williams | krwillia@mines.edu
A report on marine plastics presented at the World Economic Forum in 2016 highlights the gravity of plastic pollution—“in 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the sea”. Key questions include the impact on fish and other wildlife and whether we need to be concerned about consuming exposed fish. However, a major drawback in any attempt to study the effects of microplastics is the availability of well characterized materials. This project is a critical step towards developing microplastics (and nanoplastics) ‘standards’ that will allow more definitive conclusions to be drawn.
More Information
1) A. L. Lusher, et al. , “Sampling, isolating and identifying microplastics ingested by fish and invertebrates”, Anal. Methods, 2017, 9, 1346
2) A. A. Koelmans, et al., Risks of Plastic Debris: Unravelling Fact, Opinion, Perception, and
Belief”, Environ. Sci. Technol. DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.7b02219
3) N. v. Moos, P. Burkhardt-Holm, A. Köhler, “Uptake and Effects of Microplastics on Cells and Tissue of the Blue Mussel Mytilus edulis L. after an Experimental Exposure, Environ. Sci. Technol. 2012, 46, 11327−11335 dx.doi.org/10.1021/es302332w
4) F. Bessaa,, et al. “Occurrence of microplastics in commercial fish from a natural estuarine environment”, Marine Pollution Bulletin 128 (2018) 575–584
5) https://www.patagonia.com/blog/2016/06/what-do-we-know-about-tiny-plastic-fibers-in-the-ocean/
Grand Engineering: Engineer the tools of scientific discovery
Student Preparation
Qualifications
Strong aptitude for analytical instrumentation and chemistry. Prior hands-on experience with instrumental analysis (e/g., IR, NMR, LC) will be great.
Time Commitment
40-60 hrs/month
Skills/Techniques Gained
Advance knowledge and skills for obtaining and interpreting analytical data; critical thinking; problem solving; finding and reading published literature effectively; communication skills; ability to do independent research.
Mentoring Plan
Meeting with faculty and grad student mentor to discuss research plans and results (every other week)
Group meetings + opportunity to present research to the group
Graduate student mentor will work with undergraduate student