In the Netherlands, made a miniature robot that cleans water from microplastics

It works like a coral polyp.

Scientists from the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands presented a miniature robot that purifies water from various substances, including microplastics. This is an environmentally friendly device that does not pollute the environment with waste. This was written in PNAS.

The microrobot was built from quick-reacting polymers; it moves under the influence of light and gravity. It can attract and trap particles from a liquid, cleaning it from plastic too.

To create the robot, scientists figured out how coral polyps work – miniature creatures with tentacles that together form a coral. The core of the polyp moves so as to attract microparticles of food. While eating, corals purify water, but microplastic is harmful for them, which can not be said about the robot.

The wireless artificial polyp 1 by 1 cm in size has a stalk so sensitive to gravity and light that the robot moves its tentacles and collects small debris.

Scientists are trying to create an array of artificial polyps that will interact. They suggest that they will be able to far carry polluting particles and transfer them to each other. Such a robot will even remove viruses from the water.

The robot can operate in different conditions, due to the hydrogel, which was processed so that the degree of contamination and salinity do not affect it.