APPLICATION OF TRIBOELECTRIC EFFECT IN THE PROCESS OF REMOVING MICROPLASTICS FROM WATER

Plastics have been the most environmentally degrading thing mankind has ever created. Since its invention, we had to deal with constant environmental problems around it which affected all aspects ofthe environment. Even when we tried to manage it created its own problems and in this series of problems something so minute missed our eyes and is creating a menace out there in the oceans and water bodies, it is the problem of microplastics. This paper aims at dealing with the problem of Microplastics by proposing a method to remove Microplastics from the water with the help of the triboelectric effect. The triboelectric effect is a type of contact electrification on which certain materialsbecome electrically charged after they are separated from a different material with which they were incontact [1]. With this principle in mind, we focus on ways to charge the Microplastics in water which we can remove with an electrostatic separator. This project ultimately helps in maintaining a healthy aquatic ecosystem and indirectly helps in eliminating the presence of microplastics in the food chain.