Problem Plastics

One morning last fall, Sarah Grace Kimberly, a student at the University of Houston C. T. Bauer College of Business, was beginning her day like any other, methodically applying her makeup. At the time, she was unaware of the hidden complexities in her routine and the global challenge that lies behind it: the pervasive presence of plastics in our daily lives, often in ways we don’t even realize.

According to the latest estimates, our oceans bear the burden of 75 million to 199 million tons of plastic waste, with a projected 23-37 million tons per year by 2040, according to the United Nations Environment Programme. As they do so often, UH students and faculty are tackling this problem with their Cougar ingenuity. The University’s Energy Transition Institute challenged students to develop sustainable solutions for a circular plastics economy: a system by which plastic is responsibly reused so it does not leak into the natural environment.

Their goal is ambitious but vital: to significantly reduce the 5.4 million metric tons of microplastics that enter the natural world each year.

Last semester, more than 60 students participated in the inaugural Circular Plastics Challenge. From this group, six teams emerged to present their ideas at the UH Energy Coalition’s Energy Night. Each proposal exemplified a knack for creative problem-solving that has become synonymous with the University.

Among the diverse proposals were ideas for limiting excess packaging and replacing plastic products with more sustainable materials. But one stood out. Kimberly and Emma Nicholas tackled a nefarious byproduct of the plastic crisis: the prevalence of microplastics in personal care products, like makeup. They proposed using a liquid-based membrane functioning like a magnet to capture these tiny, indiscernible plastics that go down our household drains every day.

Their goal is ambitious but vital: to significantly reduce the 5.4 million metric tons of microplastics that enter the natural world each year.

“We wanted to provide a simple solution to a growing problem,” says Kimberly. “Before we did this project, we didn’t know that microplastics existed, let alone in our makeup. I didn’t know I was basically putting plastic on my face every single day and washing it off into our drains. Because it’s an unseen problem, it’s hard to address.”

Joe Powell, ETI’s founding executive director, was inspired by what the future could look like with UH students using their skills and intellect to improve the world.

“If you look at the wide variety of proposals and approaches, you can see the complexity of the problem and all the different things that society must consider to find solutions,” he says. “I think circularity in plastics and chemicals is as difficult to address as the net-zero issue within the energy sector, if not more. We have a unique opportunity here to tackle both, and it’s really great to see our students thinking ahead.”