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The objective of this project was to test various materials to determine which ones collect the most atmospheric water when exposed to the same environmental factors. The experiment observed the effect of weather conditions, a material’s surface area and hydrophilicity on atmospheric water collection. The initial hypothesis was that hydrophobic materials with the greatest surface area would collect the most water. The materials were placed in the same outside location each night for twelve trials. The following day, the materials were weighed to see how much water each had collected. On average, ribbed plastic collected 10.8 mL of water per trial, which was over 20% more than any other material. This result partially supported the hypothesis because although hydrophobic materials collected more water, surface area did not have a significant effect on water collection.

The authors looked at the primary structure of lignin peroxidase in an attempt to identify mutations that would improve both the stability and solubility of the peroxidase protein. The goal is to engineer peroxidase enzymes that are stable to help break down polymers, such as PVC, into monomers that can be reused instead of going to landfills.

The authors combine chemical, enzymatic, and microbial-based methods to optimize degradation of plastics within a surgical facemask.

This paper looks at using spent coffee grounds as a partial substitute for titanium dioxide (TiO₂) as a catalyst for chemical reactions. Using UV-Vis spectrophotometry, they found that adding the coffee grounds to TiO₂ in a 3:1 ratio, there is still meaningful catalytic activity. This offers a cheaper solution than just using pure TiO₂.

Here seeking to identify a method to remove harmful microplastics from water, the authors investigated the viability of using electrolysis to degrade microplastics in tap water. Compared to control samples, they found electrolysis treatment to significantly the number of net microplastics, suggesting that this treatment could potentially implemented into homes or drinking water treatment facilities.

The authors analyzed the heat transfer of different containers in the microwave aiming to identify the most optimal material of container to reduce heating time.

In this study, the authors investigate whether microplastics affect terrestrial plant growth and soil quality.

Here the authors investigated the optical possibilities of gelatin and acrylic in regards to potential implementations at soft contact lenses. They fabricated lenses of different shapes and evaluated the refraction of laser light finding that gelatin needed to be thickened or increased in curvature to account for its lower refractive index compared to plastics, or used in a mixture to strengthen the lens.

In this study, the authors test the longevity of a anti-mite compound, amitraz, in commercially-sold strips and the age-dependent efficacy of these strips in preventing honey bee colony collapse by ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor.

Head injuries are common in American football and the facemasks found on football helmets receive a lot of impact during contacts. This study investigates how effective they are at reducing concussion risk.