Advertisement

If you have an ACS member number, please enter it here so we can link this account to your membership. (optional)

ACS values your privacy. By submitting your information, you are gaining access to C&EN and subscribing to our weekly newsletter. We use the information you provide to make your reading experience better, and we will never sell your data to third party members.

ENJOY UNLIMITED ACCES TO C&EN

Pollution

Showcasing science’s role in addressing plastic in oceans

International exhibition visits Washington, D.C.

by Cheryl Hogue
June 7, 2018 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 96, Issue 24

 

Photo shows three people looking at a display of plastic objects collected from the ocean with a sign reading, "Every day, the equivalent of 850 [shipping] containers full of plastic enter the ocean. About 300 million metric tons of plastic are produced every year."
Credit: Cheryl Hogue/C&EN
Photo shows man rotating a giant tube filled with water and pieces of plastic.

A traveling, international exhibition, Ocean Plastics Lab(above), is on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., through June 17 to highlight the role of science in understanding and combating plastics in the world’s oceans. Nick Rome (right) of the Consortium for Ocean Leadership, a group of academic and industry organizations, demonstrates that polypropylene—the blue pieces suspended in the tube—float in water, while polystyrene (red) and polyethylene terephthalate (white) sink. The exhibition is an initiative of the German Federal Ministry of Education & Research and the German Marine Research Consortium and is supported by the European Commission.

Article:

This article has been sent to the following recipient:

0 /1 FREE ARTICLES LEFT THIS MONTH Remaining
Chemistry matters. Join us to get the news you need.