Triple Ring Technologies (TRT) and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI) have announced a collaboration to produce a portable microplastic sensor to quantify the amount of plastic particles in water.
In the Jan. 11 announcement from TRT, developers of the device describe it as a "new tool (that) will allow easy, widespread assessment of microplastic pollution in waterways, wastewater, stormwater, and other applications in which the presence of microplastics is a concern."
TRT stated that the core technology for the device was developed at WHOI by Dr. Anna Michel, associate scientist for the WHOI Department of Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering. The creation of the actual fieldable unit will be directed by Dr. Sheila Hemami, senior director of Growth Initiatives at TRT, according to the announcement.
"Combining WHOI's core sensing technology with Triple Ring's experience in delivering integrated products will significantly move the needle on the understanding of microplastic pollution and will drive data-based mitigation solutions," Hemami said in the announcement.
TRT received an SBIR Phase I grant from the Environmental Protection Agency and will execute the grant in collaboration with WHOI, the announcement states.
The sensor will fill an as-yet unmet need for environmental sensing technologies, as currently there is no available low-cost, accurate and rapid way to analyze microplastic pollution.
