Researchers develop 3D imaging tech “like a CT scan” to create bacteria degradation pathways for plastic

09 Sep 2024 --- In a “global first,” University of Waterloo (UK) researchers are working toward understanding the finer details of microplastics using 3D imaging technology, paving the way for more effective methods of plastic waste recycling with help from hungry bacteria.

Micro and nanoplastics are contributing to an exponentially worsening environmental crisis, particularly in rapidly industrializing countries. Due to decomposition difficulties, plastic pollution poses significant threats to ecosystems, wildlife and human health, underscore the researchers.

Scientists have struggled to understand the exact process of how these micro and nanoplastics degrade, particularly at the micro and nanoscale, which has hindered efforts to mitigate their environmental impact.

“Observing and understanding how the fine details of microplastics function and how they break down are key to eradicating them from our environment,” stress the Waterloo scientists.

In collaboration with the UK’s National Research Council, the researchers leveraged 3D imaging technology in addition to traditional 2D microscopy to observe the degradation of micro and nanoplastics with “unprecedented detail.”

“Most microscope images provide a two-dimensional view, similar to a medical X-ray, which gives us some information but lacks depth,” says William Anderson, a professor in Waterloo’s Department of Chemical Engineering.

“However, 3D imaging is like a CT scan, offering far more detailed insights into the structure and degradation of microplastics. This level of detail has been incredibly challenging to achieve, but it’s crucial for understanding what is happening at the surface of micro and nanoplastics and how degradation processes work.”

Working with light

The research group used a novel combination of physical and biological approaches to obtain new visual data. They utilized a photocatalytic process, which treated micro and nanoplastics with UV light and a titanium oxide catalyst. As a result, the team could observe and analyze the degradation at a microscopic level.

“Using this methodology reveals not just that degradation is happening, but exactly how and where it’s occurring on the surface of micro and nanoplastics,” explains chemical engineering professor Boxin Zhao, a University of Waterloo endowed chair in Nanotechnology. 

“This knowledge is crucial for developing more effective methods of breaking down plastics on the micro and nanoscales.”

New biocycling methods

Anderson and Zhao, in collaboration with researchers from the Department of Chemical Engineering and the Department of Biology at the University of Waterloo, are using these 3D imaging methods to develop biocycling methods in which microplastics could be used as a carbon source for bacteria.

These bacteria would ingest microplastics and then excrete an environmentally friendly biopolymer that could be used to create new materials like plastic bags or packaging films.

The university’s research team highlights the broader implications of these findings and is now forming a multidisciplinary plastics biocycling research initiative.

The collaboration emphasizes the importance of bringing together different fields of expertise to tackle complex environmental challenges. 

The study, “3D imaging photocatalytically degraded micro-and nanoplastics,” was recently published in IOPSCIENCE.

By Benjamin Ferrer