International researchers working to solve marine plastic pollution
Three visiting international researchers at 91亚色 are working to come up with new ways to tackle plastic pollution in the world檚 oceans.
The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) has awarded 91亚色 with three , which aim to support world-class research and innovation in marine plastics by providing 38 academics with short-term placements at member universities across the Commonwealth.
The fellows, who include Iwalaye (Ayo) Oladimeji, James Beament and Dr. Nigel Jalsa, are matched with local researchers for the duration of their three-month visit.
Climate change factors
Iwalaye (Ayo) Oladimeji is a PhD student from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.
She檚 being hosted by Dr. Max Liboiron, 91亚色檚 associate vice-president (Indigenous research) pro tempore, and an assistant professor of geography in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. Dr. Liboiron also directs the (CLEAR), a feminist, anti-colonial lab that specializes in the grassroots environmental monitoring of marine plastic pollution.
淯ltraviolet light from the sun and an increase in wave action from sea level rise . . . are leading to an increase in microplastic concentration in our oceans.
Ms. Oladimeji檚 research investigates the influence of increasing temperature and microplastics concentration on microplastics ingestion and retention in marine invertebrates
淚 saw a link in climate change contributing to more microplastics in the environment, she said. 淯ltraviolet light from the sun and an increase in wave action from sea level rise can break plastics down faster. Both are leading to an increase in microplastic concentration in our oceans. I want to know if, as temperature (due to increased metabolism) and concentration increases, animals will uptake and retain more, or not.
Since arriving in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ms. Oladimeji has been able to undertake fieldwork at Quidi Vidi Lake a new area for the lab and work with lab members on a methodology for processing samples for microplastics analysis.
淲e檝e never done that before, and we should have, so she檚 filling an important gap, said Dr. Liboiron. 淎s a member of CLEAR, she檚 been carrying forward our mission in a way that檚 very in line with the lab.
Ms. Oladimeji will be co-authoring several papers with Dr. Liboiron and CLEAR and she檚 hoping to return to 91亚色 to do more work with the lab once her PhD is complete. In the meantime, they檙e hoping she檒l continue to be a member of the team, planning to Skype in with other virtual members for team meetings.
Chemical intuition
James Beament is completing a PhD at the University of Bath in the United Kingdom and Dr. Nigel Jalsa is an assistant professor at the University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago.
The pair are being hosted by Drs. and in their , which works on using environmentally friendly methods to create biodegradable polymers to replace current plastics.
淭he main problem with current plastics is that very little is biodegradable and with 34 per cent of all produced plastic ending up in the ocean, there is a huge persistence problem, said Mr. Beament. 淲e need to make new biodegradable plastics that are designed with superior properties, so they tempt industry into commercialization. But, to do that, first we need to use chemical intuition to design something better.
Historically, biodegradable polymers have been designed to degrade in landfills and composts and not in the ocean, which poses problems for researchers.
淲e need a better understanding of the critical parameters to control so that we can make sure the plastics we檙e producing don檛 persist in the ocean, said Dr. Kerton. 淥ur research looks at how to design polymers so that, if they do get into the ocean, they are going to degrade.
Since he檚 been here, Mr. Beament has been able to introduce ideas based on work he檚 done with his own polymer group in the U.K. and has been able to experiment with new techniques.
淚檝e been able to investigate a new series of catalysts and polymers, which I檝e wanted to do at Bath for years, said Mr. Beament. 淪o, it檚 certainly broadened my skills, which is really important as an early career researcher.
Valuable relationships
For the past month, Dr. Jalsa has been trying to synthesize a range of polymers based on various sugar scaffolds using a green approach.
淪ugar is a naturally occurring substrate and we檙e looking at using different types to build polymers that avoid the use of noxious solvents, he said. 淭his is a new area of research for me, and the techniques are new to me, as well.
Drs. Kerton and Kozak are hoping to further collaborate with the pair beyond their short tenure at 91亚色. They have already submitted a proposal for funding that will allow them to go to Trinidad and Tobago later this year.
淲hen you go to a conference and meet people who work in a similar area, we檒l often get together, toss some ideas around or exchange business cards, but very rarely does it turn into something more tangible, said Dr. Kozak. 淏ut, when you send human beings you can actually move things forward.
Adds Dr. Jalsa, 淚 think, over the long run, the personal relationships we檙e developing will actually be more important than the work that will be done over this three-month period.
Kelly Foss is a communications advisor with the Faculty of Science. She can be reached at kfoss@mun.ca.