ANDROMEDA
Quantifying nano- & microplastics in the ocean
Andromeda is a research project developing analytical techniques to quantify nanoplastics and microplastics and their degradation in the marine environment. Andromeda is one of the six projects approved following the 2nd transnational call of the JPI Oceans 2019.
Objectives
- Develop cost-effective in situ techniques and measurement methods to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of microplastic monitoring,
- Develop new advanced sampling and analysis methods that focus on smaller microplastic (< 10 μm) and nanoplastic (< 0.2 μm) particles to enable better assessment of the risks of plastic pollution,
- To test and improve accelerated degradation approaches in the laboratory that mimic natural fragmentation and the release of chemical additives in order to study the mechanisms of plastics degradation over a reasonable period,
- Characterise the degradation of microplastics using advanced analysis techniques such as μFTIR, Raman imaging and SEM-EDX,
- Study the influence of parameters such as temperature, pH and hyperbaric pressure on the degradation of microplastics.
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