It is well known that microplastics are a problem: They are tiny, barely visible plastic particles that can harm the environment, for example, if they are eaten by animals. However, it has been difficult to assess the effect of even smaller particles, which can hardly be detected using conventional methods: Plastic particles with a diameter of less than one micrometer commonly referred to as &quot;nanoplastics&quot;. Such tiny particles can even be absorbed into living cells.
TU Wien (Vienna) has now succeeded in developing a measurement method which can even detect individual nanoplastic particles – orders of magnitude faster than previous techniques. These results have now been published in the journal Scientific Reports. The new method now has the potential to become the basis for new measurement devices for environmental analysis.
<h4>Detecting molecules by wavelength</h4>
&quot;We use a physical principle that has also often been used in chemical analysis, namely Raman scattering,&quot; explains Sarah Skoff, group leader of the &quot;Solid State Quantum Optics and Nanophotonics&quot; research group at TU Wien. In this process, molecules are illuminated with a laser beam, causing them to vibrate. Part of the energy of the laser light is thus converted into vibrational energy, while the rest of the energy is re-emitted in the form of light.
By measuring this light and comparing its energy with the laser light that was originally emitted, the vibrational energy of the molecule is determined – and because different molecules vibrate in different ways, it is possible to find out which molecule it is.
&quot;Ordinary Raman spectroscopy, however, would not be suitable for detecting the smallest nanoplastics,&quot; says Sarah Skoff. &quot;It would be far too insensitive and take far too long.&quot; The research team therefore had to search for physical effects that could significantly improve this technique.
<h4>The trick with the gold grid</h4>
To do this, they adapted a method that has already been used in a similar form to detect biomolecules. The sample is thereby put onto an extremely fine grid made of gold. The individual gold wires are only 40 nanometers thick and about 60 nanometers apart. &quot;This metal grid acts like an antenna,&quot; says Sarah Skoff. &quot;The laser light is amplified at certain points - so there is a much more intense interaction with the molecules there. There is also an interaction between the molecule and the electrons in the metal lattice, which ensures that the light signal from the molecules is additionally amplified.&quot;
In ordinary Raman spectroscopy, the light that is then emitted by the molecules is normally broken down into all its wavelengths to identify which molecule it is. However, the TU Wien team was able to show that the technique can also be simplified: &quot;We know what the characteristic wavelengths of the nanoplastic particles are, and so we look very specifically for signals at precisely these wavelengths,&quot; Skoff explains. &quot;We were able to show that this can improve the measurement speed by several orders of magnitude. Previously, you had to measure for ten seconds to get a single pixel of the image you were looking for – with us, it takes just a few milliseconds.&quot; Experiments with polystyrene (Styrofoam) showed that even at this very high speed, the nanoplastic particles can be reliably detected – even at extremely low concentrations. Unlike other methods, this technique even allows the detection of individual particles.
<h4>The basis for new measurement devices</h4>
The research team now wants to investigate the potential applications of the new technique in more detail - for example, how it can be used to detect nanoplastics in environmentally relevant and biological samples, such as blood. &quot;In any case, we have now been able to show that the basic physical principle works,&quot; says Sarah Skoff. &quot;In principle, this lays the foundation for the development of new measurement devices that could be used to examine samples directly in nature outside the laboratory in the future.&quot;
This research work was supported by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG, PhoQus2D) and the Austrian Science Fund (FWF, Quantoom).

Detecting nanoplastics – in fractions of a second

Although plastics don’t have the best reputation at present, they have fascinating properties. Modern society cannot make do without them. We all use them, and we’re not going to stop using plastics just like that. Why? The answer to this question follows in this interview with Professor Jan Merna, head of <a href="https://lcms.labrulez.com/companies/11">UCT Prague</a>’s Department of Polymers. Merna also discusses trends in polymer research, new approaches to 3D printing, and why biodegradable polymers are not the game changer they might seem to be at first glance.
<h5>People commonly associate polymers with plastics, which do not have the best reputation with some in the general public. Why did you choose to study polymers in your professional life?</h5>
I became interested in polymers as far back as high school because they are cutting-edge materials. The study of polymers is actually the youngest branch of chemistry, next to the organic and inorganic branches. Just last year marked 100 years since chemists gained an understanding of the structure of polymers. There was hot discussion in the early days of the field. There were no polymer chemists, so a couple of organic chemists came up with the initial idea to create a specialty in this area. Hermann Staudinger, who demonstrated that polymers are composed of high molar mass macromolecules, had to struggle for a long time against the entire chemistry community at the time to show that polymers are not clusters of small molecules but are huge macromolecules. Most renowned chemists thought that such large molecules could not be stable and must be clusters. They were mistaken, though Staudinger waited over 30 years after his initial discoveries for the Nobel Prize.
What I like about polymers and modern materials is that they have a range of different applications and that the topic itself is complex. In organic chemistry, we often synthesize a new substance, describe it, and that’s more or less the end of the process. But for polymer chemists, the polymer synthesis is often just the beginning of research work, because we are interested in the material properties of a synthesized substance and investigating what a substance might be good for in real life. Lately, we are also thinking more about end-of-life for materials; how to deal with polymer waste.
You mean recycling?
Yes, this is a very important topic. We in Europe collect most of our plastic waste and not much of it ends up in the environment, but the problem arises in other parts of the world where there is poor waste management. If plastics get into nature, one of the properties of polymers is that they are very resistant to degradation and can survive in the environment for hundreds of years before disintegrating.
Actually, the optimal solution would be to develop better systems for collecting and reusing plastic waste. This presumes careful sorting into individual types of plastic, because if we don’t sort properly, just mix different kinds of plastics together, melt them, and make new products, the resultant outputs won’t have good properties. However, proper sorting is not only difficult, but it is also expensive. Plastic recycling also can’t be performed on an infinite loop, because repeated melting degrades the polymers involved and there is a limited number of cycles before the polymers become unusable. That’s why current research is focusing on finding alternative to mechanical recycling.
Which is?
The crucial challenge for our field is finding an economical and energetically reasonable way how to get to monomers, which are the primary raw materials from which virgin polymer can also be produced. So far, there are solutions for selected polymers, e.g. polyethylene terephthalate or polymethyl methacrylate (that is, plexiglass), but the vast majority of these are polymers that are not used broadly. We would need to find viable and cheap solutions for polyethylene and polypropylene. Unfortunately, there is no viable cleavage site in the structures of polyethylene and polypropylene, and current technologies such as pyrolysis are not very selective.
Another research direction is the quest for new monomers for the production of polymers that could then be easily degraded, i.e. recycled chemically. The problem, however, is that since the 1970s, no new polymers have gained ground in the marketplace, mostly for economic reasons. We will see if a requirement for good degradability would hearken change and if these kinds of new polymers might have competitive properties in terms of strength, ductility, processing stability, and so on.
Does plastic waste in nature, despite being ugly, have other problems?
In general, polymers are non-toxic inert substances and are biologically tolerated. They do not harm us on their own and are not toxic. Body implants are made from polymers; tissue substitutes are made from silicone. We store blood for transfusions in PVC bags softened with phthalates. What we don’t know for sure is whether polymers cause any health risks in the form of small particles.
For example?
There is an existing hypothesis that microplastics can act as carriers of pathogens, but this risk exists for all microparticles in the environment. We have been living with synthetic plastics for at least 70 years, so microplastics in the environment are not a recent phenomenon. In the past, thought, polymer products were not stabilized as well as they are now. They used to decompose over shorter intervals, and so-called secondary microplastics were formed more easily (but from far fewer plastics were produced). The first mention of finding microplastics in oceans dates back to the 1970s, but this was not a fashionable topic of investigation back then. Due to plastic non-toxicity, the WHO does not recommended monitoring microplastics in water. Water purification technologies, however, can be highly effective in removing any particles, including microplastics.
What do you think about the fact that most plastics collected in yellow recycling bins across the Czech Republic end up in incinerators?
Fine by me. From a chemist’s point of view, this is definitely a better scenario than being out in the environment or in a landfill. Of course, I’m talking about plastics, which are difficult to recycle. Most polymers are made from oil, and human being burn 90% of oil straight away. So if plastics could serve as an intermediate material product and we could get part of the energy we invested in production back, why not? The exhaust fumes from incineration of most common polymers are not toxic and are similar to those of burning gasoline, i.e. made of carbon dioxide and water.
One of current research trends is the production of biodegradable polymers.
Yes, but even in this case, one must note that even if a polymer breaks down into something harmless in nature after some time, we lose all the energy we had put into its production.
I believe that for biodegradable polymers, a much better scenario for the end of a product’s life cycle would be to collect and recycle them, or, if recycling’s not possible, to incinerate them. For polymers from renewable sources, this would achieve a neutral carbon balance. If we can collect plastic waste, it doesn’t matter if it’s biodegradable or very stable since we still can transform it into something.
<img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/labrulez-bucket-strapi-h3hsga3/VSCHT_Ze_cast_plastu_konci_ve_spalovnach_Za_me_v_poradku_Jan_Merna_76e58abc1f.jpg" alt="UCT Prague: Jan Merna."/>
Are there any other hot topics for polymer researchers?
Right now, new 3D printing technologies that naturally lend themselves well to small-scale production are very hot. Specifically, I am referring to reactive 3D printing, where polymerization takes place directly during production (printing), where the resulting product has significantly better properties than what’s possible using classic 3D printing technology from polymer strings. We are investigating this at UCT Prague as well.
How do you polymerize during the printing process?
We use light, for example. We have a bowl with a transparent bottom, pour a monomer into it, and the light where it passes through starts the polymerization process. Then we move the product a little higher and the monomer will again flow under the product under development, and so on, until a completely compact, homogeneous product is created.
Can you also produce polymers that can react to external stimuli?
Yes, this is also an attractive direction for research. For example, we have polymers which macromolecules, when heated, change shape and, for example, pack into a tighter conformation. Macroscopically, this manifests itself in the form of shrinkage that we can use as a mechanical element, a trigger or a valve. The stimuli can be different: ​​temperature, pH, or the presence of a specific chemical. There’s the potential for use in detectors or sensors.
Your department is historically connected to the topic of hydrogels. Is there still room for development in this direction?
Hydrogels belong to the group of materials that are attractive because they can be used in medical applications. Due to the softness and pliability of hydrogels, they are also used as substitutes for human soft tissue, beside traditional use as contact lenses developed by Otto Wichterle. Soft tissues are composed of natural protein macromolecules, i.e. they are also polymers, just perfectly produced by nature.
You are particularly interested in research of catalytic polymerizations. What is that?
You’re referring to coordination polymerization, but we ourselves also use the term “catalytic polymerization” for better comprehension. For most polymerizations, we need a substance that forces a monomer to transform into a polymer. In catalytic polymerizations, the agent that forces this transformation is the catalyst. We currently use such processes to produce the majority of polyethylene and polypropylene that together comprise the majority of plastics. The basic procedure has been around for decades but was initially unviable. As catalysts gradually developed, production increased, and today, these basic polymers are produced so well and so efficiently in terms of pricing and properties that they are replacing other polymers used in traditional applications.
Can you give us an example?
For the production of foils, e.g. for shopping bags, softened polyvinyl chloride was used most often in the past. Polyethylene is now used because not only is it cheaper, but its production is also more ecological. Modification of polyethylene and polypropylene properties for other application is definitely still a promising direction of research.
In academic research, the search for even more active catalysts is not our greatest concern because we can produce a lot of polymers cheaply enough. Instead, current research is directed towards the possibilities of depolymerization and investigating whether we will be able to selectively split a polymer into pieces and turn it into new material. In our research group, we focus on chemical modifications of polyethylene and we use one specific type of catalyst, the so-called chain walking catalysts. In the case of classic industrial catalysts, a monomer molecule sticks to the end of a growing macromolecule, and this is how the chain lengthens linearly. The catalysts we use are extraordinary in that they can jump back and forth along a polymer chain and start its growth again from a given part of the chain. The result is a macromolecule that is not “straight” but highly branched, and this completely changes its properties.
How?
For example, polyethylene and polypropylene are typical plastics and are hard materials, but if we branch them, we can make them into materials that have the same properties as rubber. Our next endeavour is to build polar groups into polyethylene chains. This is one of the biggest challenges in current catalysis. Fortunately, our catalysts are toleranteven to polar substrates, and this lets us to prepare special polar-non-polar macromolecules from which polymer nanoreactors can be constructed, to name one example. This means we are moving from commodity materials to chemical specialties.
Does your research group currently collaborate with commercial partners?
We have collaborated with Synthos for a long time. Most recently, as part of a two-year project, we jointly developed a new type of elastomer not based on butadiene polymers (normally used to make rubber) but on cheaper polymers based on ethylene.
You said that the vast majority of polymers are made from petroleum. How much plastic is produced from renewable raw materials?
Less than 1%, and the production costs are usually higher, so an increase in production is not very rapid. This is nicely described in the article “How green are green plastics?” To make a long story short, we use more energy to make environmentally degradable polymers than to make synthetic polymers. Which may not be problematic in principle, as long as fossil fuel energy isn’t required. So if we get to a future scenario in which non-fossil fuel energy sources are not a problem for us, this is one of possible path forward. We are still far from this ideal, however.
For the future, it should just be necessary to shift our point of view about options. In our group, we have investigated the use of carbon dioxide as a starting raw material for preparing polymers, for example. We overcame CO2’s low reactivity by adding a second, more reactive monomer and a suitable catalyst. The result was polycarbonates, which are otherwise produced from highly toxic phosgene. This kind of chemistry is not only more sustainable, but it can improve safety. So far, however, catalysts are not effective enough for industrial scale production, but this also used to be the for the aforementioned ethene polymerization catalysts in the beginning of their development.
You have been head of the Department of Polymers for over two years. Where do you want to lead the department?
I have no desire to tell people what to do. On the contrary, I would like them to be as independent as possible in their research. As a leader, what I can and want to influence is what kind of people will work here. We are currently witnessing a generational transition. Half of my colleagues are at an age when they wouldn’t have to show up tomorrow if they didn’t want to. Fortunately, they are kind-hearted, helping us here and passing on their experience to younger colleagues. It’s up to me to find us quality replacements for the future.
At first, I was sceptical that this could be possible, because we all know how basic table salaries are set here at UCT Prague. How to tell a potential candidate from abroad that their salary will be only higher if they find grant funding? Just 100 km away from Prague, candidates can get an adequate guaranteed salary (several times higher than here) for the same work. The number of students studying in materials programs is not large enough to ensure a big enough pool of doctoral students to meet our near-term needs for qualified research staff.
Nevertheless, we managed to recruit one former graduate who had completed several postdoctoral stays abroad, and a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship (MSCA) facilitated his return. A young Ukrainian colleague also found employment with us via a similar MSCA grant for Ukrainian scientists. A year ago, in cooperation with the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the CAS (Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; IOCB), we managed to recruit a married couple of chemists who had previously been at other top research groups. In Prague, they both got the opportunity to start their own independent careers, Dr. Gonsales at UCT Prague and her husband at IOCB. Working together as institutions, we try to provide them with excellent research facilities. Last but not least, I am pleased with the current cohort of young researchers who are slowly evolving from their junior status and are starting to succeed in getting their own grant-funded projects. The situation is therefore developing more optimistically than I had initially thought was possible.

That some plastic ends up in incinerators? Fine with me.

Plastics and microplastics are all around us. They appeared in the 1950s and have become part of our everyday reality. We build with plastic, wear it, transport in it, and wrap our food in it. However, more and more questions are arising about this material with many practical properties. Microplastics are found practically everywhere; in water, soil, and air. But how do microplastics actually interact with the human body? What impact do they have on our environment and our health? Is it true that they penetrate places like the brain or placenta? And if so, what does that actually mean? Just like elsewhere in the world, these and many other questions related to plastics occupy the minds of many scientists in the Czech Republic, including one directly at the RECETOX center.Ondřej Adamovský is an environmental toxicologist who has long been involved in the issue of plastics and microplastics at the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://lcms.labrulez.com/companies/19">RECETOX center</a>. Although his research scope is broader, he is currently focusing primarily on developing new methods within the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://lcms.labrulez.com/companies/36">CEITEC VUT</a>, University of Ljubljana, and Technical University of Vienna <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://planterastics.fkkt.uni-lj.si/plastsensing/">consortium</a> to unequivocally prove the presence of microplastics in the human body and organisms. Despite the hundreds of articles published annually warning about microplastics, a&nbsp;serious method to truly prove their presence in the human body is still lacking.“Scientific articles that are now widely appearing and reporting that microplastics have been found in lungs, placenta, brain, or penises raise the question of how they could have gotten there. Unlike chemical substances, which are soluble, microplastics are solid particles, and those above a&nbsp;certain size cannot pass through biological barriers and move within the body. From this perspective, our current project is very beneficial because the newly developed methods for detecting microplastics will provide very precise information about what sizes and types of microplastics are capable of migrating within the human body,” explains Ondřej Adamovský.<img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/labrulez-bucket-strapi-h3hsga3/RECETOX_Mikroplasty_jako_castice_jsou_stale_otevrene_tema_nicmene_rizika_spojena_s_jejich_aditivy_zname_rika_environmentalni_toxikolog_Ondrej_Adamovsky_8a41ab5c09.jpg" alt="RECETOX: Microplastics as particles are still an open topic, but the risks associated with their additives are known, says environmental toxicologist Ondřej Adamovský" srcset="https://storage.googleapis.com/labrulez-bucket-strapi-h3hsga3/thumbnail_RECETOX_Mikroplasty_jako_castice_jsou_stale_otevrene_tema_nicmene_rizika_spojena_s_jejich_aditivy_zname_rika_environmentalni_toxikolog_Ondrej_Adamovsky_8a41ab5c09.jpg 234w," sizes="100vw" width="1200" height="800">The ability of particles to migrate through tissues raises the most questions. While the conclusions of scientific articles pointing out the findings of microplastics in the lungs, where microplastics can get, for example, by inhalation from the surrounding environment, are quite logical, the findings of microplastics in internal organs (brain, penises, or placentas) require a&nbsp;great deal of scientific scrutiny.“These studies are scientifically questionable and need to be read in detail. Specifically, in a&nbsp;recent, media-friendly study that found microplastics in penis biopsies, it is stated that microplastics in the tissue can be one hundred to five hundred micrometers in size, which is basically the size of a&nbsp;grain of sand. The claim that solid particles of this size could pass through the digestive tract, overcome biological barriers into the blood, and accumulate somewhere is absolutely excluded and scientifically questionable,” says Adamovský.How is this possible then? The most likely explanation for the presence of microplastics in the samples is secondary contamination. Given that microplastics are all around us, they most likely got into the samples simply during handling. For example, the mentioned research on the presence of microplastics in various human organs takes place in several locations, from the operating room, the sample processing site, to the place where the analyses are performed. Even though these are always clean rooms, microplastics are ubiquitous, and the fact that microplastics are also part of dust contributes to contamination.“In the case of the study with placentas, the mechanism of unintended contamination may be similar. The placenta is delivered, then taken somewhere, samples are cut from it, and if proper procedural steps and controls are not in place, it is impossible to say that the plastic comes directly from the organ and did not get into the sample later,” explains Adamovský.The new method that the scientist is now working on with a&nbsp;team of other researchers is instead based on the use of computer tomography, which works with intact tissues. Therefore, it is not necessary to disrupt or interfere with them in any way for their examination, thus minimizing the risk of secondary contamination. Based on in vivo models, scientists will look at what microplastics, what sizes, and in what places can be deposited in the organism. The larger vision is then to use human samples and analyze microplastics in tissues through biopsy. According to Adamovský, only then will we have truly indisputable proof that microplastics can move across tissues and subsequently accumulate in them.“Another problem with articles and reports is that despite the enormous amount of histopathological observations made since the 1950s, doctors have not found microplastics anywhere. Ten, twenty, fifty, or one hundred micrometers, these are large plastics visible under a&nbsp;microscope. However, no one has ever recorded them during observations, which is strange. This fact suggests that the articles are not well done, and until someone provides a&nbsp;methodology, like the one we are currently working on, all other research is very easily questionable,” claims Adamovský.Although it seems there is not much to worry about yet, monitoring the risks associated with microplastics is more than essential. If their presence in human tissues is indeed proven, it will be necessary to further investigate their effects on human health. The issue of plastics also has another dimension, which is their chemical composition.“It can be said that microplastics as particles are still an open and researched topic, but plastic additives, i.e., the chemical substances contained in them, have been tested for a long time, and their risks are known. For example, the group of phthalates1, which we also studied here at RECETOX, was found to be so dangerous that they were globally banned in 2022,” adds Adamovský.Fortunately, legislation in the context of microplastics is progressing. Over the past five years, the European Union has issued regulations banning the use of microplastics in cosmetic products or consumer products, which will help reduce their emissions into the environment2.“Microplastics have already disappeared, for example, from shampoos, where they were added as exfoliants, and certain types of plastics were also used in mascaras or cosmetic fillers. Compared to the United States, this measure came later, but it is more thorough, as it will also apply to so-called leave-on cosmetics, such as sunscreens or cleansing facial gels, which is not the case in America,” explains Adamovský.<div style="text-align:left;"><div><div><div><div id="cib-chat-main"><div><div aria-description="" aria-label="Sent by Copilot: Here is the translation:

**Even smaller particles, but an even bigger problem, are nanoplastics. These plastic particles are so small that no visual technique can capture them. Therefore, their study is challenging, and very little is known about nanoplastics so far.**

**&quot;Detection methods are very poor, they basically do not exist. So far, we know that nanoplastics, unlike microplastics, can pass through biological barriers, but the question is what they can cause. There are initial studies showing that nanoplastics can induce pro-inflammatory states,&quot; warns Adamovský.**

**The overarching root problem of microplastics and nanoplastics is, first and foremost, plastics themselves. As the name suggests, microplastics are formed during their degradation. In practice, these particles get into soils, for example, by the breakdown of protective plastic films used to protect agricultural areas against weeds or water evaporation. Another significant area where microplastics are released through degradation is food production and packaging.**

**&quot;Ninety percent of all packaging materials are plastics. It doesn't matter whether we take yogurt, meat, or vegetables, if they are in plastic packaging, microplastics will also be present in them. However, they do not only get into them from the packaging. The food production process almost always involves a&nbsp;phase where plastic is used, whether it is plastic pipes, containers, or another part of the production. Microplastics thus penetrate products primarily during production, and so we find them even in beverages in glass bottles, aluminum packaging, salt, oils, or honey. There is no large-scale production that can do without the use of plastic components,&quot; describes Adamovský.**

If you need any further assistance, feel free to ask! 😊"><div><div>Even smaller particles, but an even bigger problem, are nanoplastics. These plastic particles are so small that no visual technique can capture them. Therefore, their study is challenging, and very little is known about nanoplastics so far.“Detection methods are very poor, they basically do not exist. So far, we know that nanoplastics, unlike microplastics, can pass through biological barriers, but the question is what they can cause. There are initial studies showing that nanoplastics can induce pro-inflammatory states,” warns Adamovský.The overarching root problem of microplastics and nanoplastics is, first and foremost, plastics themselves. As the name suggests, microplastics are formed during their degradation. In practice, these particles get into soils, for example, by the breakdown of protective plastic films used to protect agricultural areas against weeds or water evaporation. Another significant area where microplastics are released through degradation is food production and packaging.<img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/labrulez-bucket-strapi-h3hsga3/RECETOX_Ondrej_Adamovsky_CELSPAC_Setkani_generaci_na_Festivalu_vedy_de415019b9.jpg" alt="RECETOX: Ondřej Adamovský (CELSPAC Meeting of generations at the Science Festival)" srcset="https://storage.googleapis.com/labrulez-bucket-strapi-h3hsga3/thumbnail_RECETOX_Ondrej_Adamovsky_CELSPAC_Setkani_generaci_na_Festivalu_vedy_de415019b9.jpg 234w," sizes="100vw" width="1500" height="1001">“Ninety percent of all packaging materials are plastics. It doesn’t matter whether we take yogurt, meat, or vegetables, if they are in plastic packaging, microplastics will also be present in them. However, they do not only get into them from the packaging. The food production process almost always involves a&nbsp;phase where plastic is used, whether it is plastic pipes, containers, or another part of the production. Microplastics thus penetrate products primarily during production, and so we find them even in beverages in glass bottles, aluminum packaging, salt, oils, or honey. There is no large-scale production that can do without the use of plastic components,” describes Adamovský.</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div><div style="text-align:left;"><div>For plastics in their versatile use today, there is no sufficient alternative. However, there are ways to at least mitigate their impact. One proposed measure is the unification of the allowed composition of plastics. This would allow plastics to be returned to the economic cycle, i.e., recycled.“Currently, each plastic is completely different and full of various additives. You can’t even combine two plastic cups from different brands; it’s an unidentifiable mix used only by specific manufacturers. This is why plastic packaging is recycled into building materials3, but this type of product is permanent and does not return to the circular economy,” explains Adamovský.The Czech Republic is also looking for ways to improve the dire situation with plastics. A&nbsp;team of researchers, with whom Ondřej Adamovský is now seeking new methods for detecting microplastics, has commented on the Global Plastics Treaty for the Ministry of the Environment. This treaty should help with the current one-way flow of plastics that end up in waste without the possibility of recycling.“Currently, mainly PET bottles are recycled because they have no additives; they are more or less the same. This is a&nbsp;big exception; most other plastics are usually burned. This treaty aims to ensure that the vast majority of plastics somehow return to circulation and become part of the circular economy. We can contribute to treaties related to plastics with our expertise, specifically an overview of the bioactivities of chemicals contained in plastics,” explains Adamovský.What is currently missing at the level of political negotiations in the Czech Republic is a&nbsp;foundation or association that would create a&nbsp;counterbalance to the industry in discussions about national implementations. An example of such good practice could be the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.foodpackagingforum.org/">Food Packaging Forum.</a></div></div><div><div><div>“The Food Packaging Forum is an entity that the government can turn to for verifying information or consulting on planned measures. They are capable of gathering scientific evidence or data that is publicly available and drawing clear and substantiated conclusions from it. Global treaties are generally very broad, and their implementation is entirely up to the governments of individual states. This kind of support is currently missing in the Czech Republic, and that is a&nbsp;shame,” summarizes Adamovský.</div></div></div></div>

Microplastics as particles are still an open topic, but the risks associated with their additives are known, says environmental toxicologist Ondřej Adamovský

An international team of scientists, including experts from CATRIN at Palacký University, has developed a new type of plasmonic photocatalyst capable of converting biomass into key raw materials for bioplastic production with high efficiency and selectivity using solar energy. The research results, which represent a significant step towards more sustainable chemical manufacturing, have been published in the prestigious journal Nature Catalysis.<img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/labrulez-bucket-strapi-h3hsga3/CATRIN_A_new_generation_of_solar_catalyst_converts_biomass_into_raw_materials_for_bioplastics_e4dc54875b.jpg" alt="CATRIN: A new generation of solar catalyst converts biomass into raw materials for bioplastics" srcset="https://storage.googleapis.com/labrulez-bucket-strapi-h3hsga3/thumbnail_CATRIN_A_new_generation_of_solar_catalyst_converts_biomass_into_raw_materials_for_bioplastics_e4dc54875b.jpg 156w," sizes="100vw" width="1280" height="1280">Biomass—organic material of plant or animal origin—is among the most promising renewable resources for the production of high value-added chemicals and materials. The research focused on the molecule 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), which is derived from sugars contained in plant biomass and is regarded as one of the key intermediates in modern biorefineries. Through controlled oxidation, HMF can be converted into 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), a compound that serves as a fundamental building block for biopolymers, such as PEF plastic, an environmentally friendly alternative to the widely used PET.However, current industrial methods for producing this compound are technologically demanding. They often require strongly alkaline conditions, elevated temperatures, or increased pressure. Despite this, they suffer from low selectivity, leading to the formation of unwanted by-products and higher energy consumption. As a result, contemporary research is seeking new approaches that would allow this chemical transformation to be driven by light energy under milder and more environmentally friendly conditions.The newly developed catalyst is based on a combination of nanostructured titanium nitride and extremely small nanoparticles of a ruthenium–platinum alloy. Titanium nitride acts as a material that very efficiently absorbs light, particularly its infrared component, converting it into energy-rich electrons and local heat. These effects subsequently promote the activation of molecular oxygen on the surface of the catalytically active nanoparticles, where the chemical reaction itself takes place.“The key aspect is that the individual components of the catalyst work together in perfect synergy. This allows us to control the oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural with great precision and achieve an almost complete conversion to the target product without the use of strong chemical additives or extreme reaction conditions. Compared with existing technologies, the process is significantly more selective, more energy-efficient, and produces substantially less waste,” said one of the corresponding authors of the study, Štěpán Kment from Palacký University.The authors emphasise that this approach enables oxygen activation in a fundamentally different way than conventional catalytic systems. As a result, the reaction can be carried out in an aqueous environment without the addition of alkaline agents, while avoiding non-selective reactions that would otherwise lead to material losses. The outcome is a highly efficient and precisely controlled process suitable for future applications.According to the researchers, this plasmonic catalytic platform represents a previously unexplored concept in the field of biomass conversion. “It opens up new opportunities for future biorefineries that could use solar energy and renewable feedstocks to produce plastics, solvents, and other chemical products with a significantly lower carbon footprint than current industrial technologies,” concluded Kment.The research involved scientists from CATRIN at Palacký University, the Centre for Energy and Environmental Technologies, and the national supercomputing centre IT4Innovations at VSB–TUO, in collaboration with partners from China, Italy, and the United States.<blockquote><h4>The original article</h4><h4><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41929-025-01454-y?fbclid=IwY2xjawOwzklleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETBWZE9nUVBUR3ViTWs5ekptc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHjMHx-lfljleJ5Hkgyj1B4u4IGXGChlp8YGVMWbdTjlmqC-beTiKrxofdB6H_aem_eS2PaVl3Ja6Hl0xfXYkHyw#Sec7">Near-infrared plasmonic activation of molecular oxygen for selective oxidation of biomass derivatives</a></h4>Manpreet Kaur, Sourav Rej, Jan Navrátil, Eva Yazmin Santiago, Michal Otyepka, Stefano Livraghi, Lorenzo Mino, Štěpán Kment, Zhikang Xu, Haibo Zhu, Paolo Fornasiero, Alexander O. Govorov, Piotr Błoński &amp; Alberto NaldoniNat Catal 8, 1370–1381 (2025)<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41929-025-01454-y">https://doi.org/10.1038/s41929-025-01454-y</a><h6>licensed under <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC-BY 4.0</a></h6></blockquote>Selected sections from the article follow. Formats and hyperlinks were adapted from the original.<h4>Abstract</h4>Upgrading biomass feedstock into higher-value chemicals is central to improve the sustainability of the chemical industry and to reduce its dependence on fossil raw materials. Heterogeneous photocatalysts are promising for the oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) to 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), a biomass-derived molecular platform for biopolymers, but their FDCA selectivity is negligible without the aid of a base. Here we present a plasmonic photocatalyst integrating TiN nanocubes and bimetallic RuPt nanoparticles that in base-free conditions exhibits complete HMF conversion and selective FDCA formation due to an unconventional mechanism of molecular oxygen activation. This unique reactivity is enhanced by both photothermal heating and hot electrons, whose contribution is confirmed by kinetic isotopic effect experiments. Density functional theory calculations support a scenario in which the activated nanoparticle–oxygen complex facilitates the rate-determining step and enables an improved FDCA selectivity. Our results demonstrate the potential of plasmonic photocatalysts in the catalytic transformation of biomass.

A new generation of solar catalyst converts biomass into raw materials for bioplastics

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RECETOX (Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment) is an independent department of the Faculty of Science of Masaryk University in Brno, which has been established in 1983. RECETOX is focused on the research and education in cross-cutting area of Environment and Health. It addresses interactions among chemicals, environment, and biological systems, including consequences at local, regional, and global levels.

RECETOX - Centrum pro výzkum toxických látek v prostředí

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