Impact Of Solidification Rate Of Magnetic Food Oils On Microplastic Extraction From Polluted Water
2025
Dominic, Princy | Surendran, Dilna
Microplastics(MPs) are tiny plastic particles that have become a serious problem in our water bodies, harming both wildlife and potentially humans. Traditional ways of removing these plastics can be expensive, inefficient, or harmful to the environment. In this study, we explored a new, natural approach using a mix of edible oils like coconut and rapeseed, combined with beeswax and tiny magnetic particles. This mixture stays liquid just long enough to grab onto MPs before it hardens, making it easy to pull out using a magnet. We found that the time the oil stays liquid, called the dwell time, is key for trapping MPs effectively. The best results came from a mix with about 10% magnetic oil, which balanced catching plastics well and being easy to collect. Using too much oil caused the mixture to sink, which isn’t good for the environment. Compared to other methods like filters or chemical treatments, this magnetic oil approach is cheaper, biodegradable, and works well, especially in calm waters like lakes. In the future, we hope to improve this method by testing it in real water environments and using drones to spread and collect the magnetic oil more safely and efficiently.
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