Princeton Grads Filter 98% of Microplastics From Ocean Water

A breakthrough water filter designed by two Princeton graduates is stopping millions of microplastic particles from entering the Atlantic Ocean, and it's already cleaning wastewater in Atlantic City.

Nathanial Banks and Yidian Liu created a large-scale filtering device that mimics hydrophobic plants in nature. These plants naturally repel water while attracting microplastic particles, making it simple to collect the pollutants and send them to recycling facilities.

The Atlantic County Utilities Authority in New Jersey installed the first commercial system as part of a two-year pilot program. Lab tests showed the prototype removes 98% of microplastics from wastewater, and officials are now testing whether it works at full scale in a city of 40,000 people.

"We're discharging to the ocean. So if we're not removing the plastic that's in our wastewater, we're putting it back into the environment," said Matt DeNafo, president of the utilities authority. The microplastics end up in fish people eat and water they bathe in, creating serious health risks.

Most treatment facilities across the country filter human sewage, solid matter, and heavy metals easily. Microplastics present a tougher challenge because they enter wastewater through washing machines, heavy rains, and litter, slipping through traditional systems.

The utilities authority isn't waiting for federal regulations to require microplastic removal. They're taking action now to protect their community and the ocean ecosystem.

The Ripple Effect

Banks and Liu's company, PolyGone Technologies, is already expanding beyond Atlantic City. California now hosts one of their commercial systems, and the founders are working on smaller versions for homes.

"This really marks a new era for treatment innovation, where we're able to build very large, scalable systems that use a very small amount of material and very low energy to treat very challenging contaminants," said Banks.

The timing matters more than ever. Researchers have found microplastics everywhere from the bottom of the Mariana Trench to the summit of Mount Everest, and inside every human organ including the brain and placenta. Many scientists believe microplastics could become the defining environmental crisis of our time.

Unlike coal pollution or deforestation, microplastics spread globally and persist indefinitely. The good news is that people aren't waiting around for someone else to fix the problem.

Entrepreneurs, scientists, and even teenagers are creating solutions worldwide. Three teens recently won a global prize for inventing tamarind powder that removes microplastics, and another teen discovered that coconut fungi can filter plastic from seawater.

Banks and Liu bring an unexpected advantage to the challenge as architecture students rather than traditional engineers. Liu said the most enjoyable part was designing the large device, bringing creative problem-solving to environmental protection.

Communities everywhere can follow Atlantic City's lead and take action before regulations require it.