A dish that no one would consume willingly. Solid with particles from car tires, a toxic mix of rubber and a host of other chemicals. Researchers at the university of vienna were able to prove in the lab that substances from tires accumulate and let us plants via from up to tire where particle added to this, the chemicals and tires can be absorbed by plants and metabolized in plants. So they could potentially wind up on consumers plates coming each year around 100000. 00 tons of tire where particles, a crew on roads in germany alone. Tires are the source of most of the micro plastic and the environment. Car tires are technical marvels as the only connection between the vehicle and the road. They need to have a good grip roll quietly. And last, for a long time to do that, on bits of chemicals are added to them via sewer systems, these additives, leach into the environment. And the us researchers were long puzzled by a die off of pacific salmon populations until they prove that the salmon were being poisoned by a substance created when tire, where particles get into the environment. Its name 6 p p d, quinones. This the austin was all we know from the us and mass depth of sam and our car solely due to tire where particles were washed off the streets. Now theres evidence, for example, that these chemicals are just as toxic for trout and snail, and all that pump system does look efficient. Vx squared, say that fish populations in germany could also be effected, but these additives remain vital to tire making. But ultimately, we need these attitudes right now. Take the most toxic 16 p, p, d, quinones, this quinonez a decomposition product needed to stabilize tires to protect them against oxidation and aging. So for now, you cant simply remove it. Tenants to from a mental his name. But we also cant rule out the possibility that 6 p. P. D is toxic to other creatures to including humans. Its effects havent been extensively studied. That alarms to hoffman and his team. They wanted to find out if the tire additive could also wind up in the human food chain. So for 14 days, they took young, let us plants, and added chemicals from tire. Were particles to their water. For the most common, the additives and the decomposition product, 6 p, p d quint in a 2nd test, they added physical tire aware particles to the water given to the plants. The analysis and the mass spectrometer showed that in both experiments, plants integrated the material into their cellular structure, alice and stuff. And all of the 5 substances we studied were absorbed, transported into the plant and been catalyzed by the plant to the metal bodies. Yet further studies should show whether these talks in this land up and let us not just in the lab, but also into real life conditions. But its clear where theres traffic, theres tire aware, and thats unlikely to change in the near future. Tire particles can wind up in the food chain through various channels, but a large number are washed into the sewers. Inner city waste water is normally clean the treatment plans, the tire particles, wind up and the leftover sewage slides. Its rich in phosphorus, which is why its used to fertilize crops, and many countries, including germany, austria, canada, and the us in the fields that can come into contact with plants. In germany, there are legal restrictions on using sewage sledges, fertilizer, tier fields used to grow. Let us cant have been treated with a slide for at least 24 months outside the big cities. Much of the water from the st goes straight into rivers and lakes and treated. So a team at berlins Technical University studied whether tire, where particles could be filtered right out of the drains themselves, down your thing, how swept city streets to collect dust entire particles. Then he experimented with a variety of filtration systems, placed under drain covers, the name of them, tests that are test stand, and berlin under defined conditions and the addition of real st george and refuse if we dropped up to 97 percent of the particles. Uh, typically a great success, but not every filter is suited to every drain, since the mixture of dust leaves and other particles varies from place to place. To keep developing their field tracing system, the team wanted to find out where does the most tire, where occur . They installed filters and various measuring stations and analyzed the remaining residue. The results showed up to 7 times more tire, wear particles near bands, and up to 3 times more at the intersection. The reason taking sharp turns slowing down, starting and stopping all put extra pressure on tires and lead to greater wear and tear traffic apps can help by providing tips for a more fluid driving style and monitoring the drivers brake too often. For example, the 30 kilometer per hour zones could also help reduce the amount of tire where particles and cities. The filters require a fair bit of maintenance, so it makes the most sense to employ them where lots of tire where particles accumulate. But why dont manufacturer simply change the materials used in their tires given their impact . Environmental scientists to hoffman thinks thats unrealistic at the moment. So, but this isnt long of it because theres a long way to go there. Im not very optimistic that this will happen quickly. Because we dont have good alternatives for many of the substances fearless to start, realistically speaking, the development of truly more eco friendly additive, this will take 5 to 10 years. So what does all this mean for our supermarket . Let us, despite the potential risk pawsman doesnt think people need to worry about that. Does a lot and some of them are in general. The let us in the supermarket will be totally okay. Well, thats not the problem kind of the point is that the complexity of chemicals and plastics must be reduced because some 10000. 00 chemical additives can be found in the plastics which pollute are ours, both on land pending to see the effect of these chemicals needs to be better researched and their use limited tire particles. Are a big part of the problem. Though its expected that starting in 2026 tire manufacturers in europe at least well have to comply with maximum limits for tire wear particles. Its clear plastic is a big problem, but just how big is it and how small is a piece of micro plastic . Exactly. And where is there more of it floating around in oceans and seas or in fresh water. Busy for mind, rena examines water samples from the wells oceans because its still unclear, just how much plastic lines up in the marine environment. Its audible moment done with our research. Were specifically trying to analyze micro blast and the false expertise were trying to find out exact figures to discover and demonstrate how big the problem is biased and what its a fact was, might be in boston to out into effects, you know, see, well monday know is out it see himself and collected the samples. Now hes examining them in the lab. The simple but was meet these here are samples from the mediterranean last week you have your standard pieces of plastic like this fragments for its from some kind of packaging. But then theres also a lot of file from a cigarette packs or potato chip bags, etc. Particular although chips through to take the ones to come. Then theres everything that comes from industrial fishing like left over bits of fishing, long and histories. If like the mediterranean is really one of the most, if not the most polluted, sees when it comes to micro plastic exhaust pull, monday no travels the loan to conduct his research. Hes developing techniques to measure might capacity x and standardize these measurements this month. And that captures the smallest of plastic particles floating on the water surface. The prostate is swimming around in or less the wills oceans. On the problem is only growing it spreading through all areas of marine life the each year around 9000000. 00 tons of plastic winds up in the worlds oceans. So every minute, some 15000 kilograms of Plastic Waste floods into the sea. Thats equivalent to the weight of 10 calls per minute. A. Yet few people realize that rivers, lakes and soil more polluted with up to 23 times as much plastic as in the sea. And saw that the numbers that have been communicated and continued to be communicated are far too low. Its out of assume theyre going talk slow to many times what they are now. For 2 reasons, die 1st, we on the Research Side of gain deeper insight into the matter. So were seeing more often were going to be paying more attention to micro plastic and how much of it there really is. That alone will make the figures rise by 100. 00, if not a 1000 percent compared to what weve been told and plus all the literal pollution which just keeps growing yellow to coleman. Lena thoughts the collective plastic according to its size. He and his team of focusing on fragments less than 3 millimeters long. Of those little data on such small pieces. Measure sits itself. We know that our bodies absorb plastic. Its also been detected in human blood, but we still dont know what is the exact effects of that are fixed. Thats being investigated using a variety of Research Method of soccer and lane is research shows. Switzerland also has a problem with plastic michael prostate has been found in own lakes and in the mountains to lake geneva as well. So i may look crystal clear, but micro plastic isnt always visible to the naked eye. The again, ill save them. I still got the lake geneva, where we are now has around the same proportion of micro plastic a certain hotspots in the mediterranean. And were finding really large amounts of plastic. Thats not surprising, given that a lake is usually a closed system or at least has little in and out flow. So everything accumulates. Each year late geneva, or a loan, takes in some 55 tons of plastic, mainly in the form of micro particles. Its estimated that around 580. 00 tons of now accumulated in the light transported by rivers about 20 tons of micro plastic, from switzerland and to the ocean. Every year i contribute to pollution worldwide. So how can this problem be solved . Classical babies are plastic problem is a global problem that requires a variety of approaches. Its not just about finding one that will work. You need different options on a variety of levels. So you can tackle the problem is a home. The the trouble is plastic doesnt decompose. It just breaks down into ever smaller pieces. But why is there so much of this stuff around . Are all plastics the same . Whats plastic actually made of plastic is made of polymers change of molecules like this. Usually plastic is produced using petroleum, when broken down into its individual parts and rearranged synthetic. Polymer chains takes shape these both special characteristics. Theyre like youre tough and can take on almost any shape or form. The plastic is easy to make, but hard to get rid of. Synthetic polymers are hard to break apart and only break down very slowly. It can take between 501000 years for some of them to decompose the 1st, the plastic made from synthetic components was developed in 19 o 7 because its based materials were relatively inexpensive, plastic soon became ubiquitous. It promised to make our lives easier and better. Yeah, stein, sites the pulse, its sites the ice and sites less of your height to the construct of the site 5 and us plus did say plastic has suited to mass production, allowing products to be made and reproduced quickly. But plastic and polymers arent only produced from petroleum polymers can also be found in nature and used to make bio plastic, corn, sugar cane. And cellulose can be processed to produce molecular chains that present similar characteristics to Petroleum Based plastics. While theyre more easily broken down, they still take a long time to degrade. So solutions are needed for disposing of bio plastics to recycling is one such solution, but it only works if the plastic is all of the same type. Get most Food Packaging is made up of the colorful mixture of plastics, which must 1st be separated from one another and stored it could chemistry provide the solution to that problem. The in the swiss toner c on chemist Samantha Anderson has developed a new process to break down mixed plastic into its basic Raw Materials and recycling. So whats our secret, the chemical or so i think its the i think its the easiest way to take it from the polymer to the monomer. And then back to the polymer again, i think this allows us to tackle complex waste. It allows us to do material recovery. Um yeah, i mean for us this is, this is the way that were gonna, were going to achieve this. Samantha anderson and her team found a way to turn Plastic Waste into plastic. That looks brand new. Start by shredding the waste. Its all kind of mixed together. Its dirty, it hasnt been pre washed. Anything like this. As you can see, theres different colors. Theres different types of plastic and theyre so ruby, we dont have to do any kind of pre screening. That would be required for other types of technology out there. This secret chemical cocktail is her invention. At Room Temperature, it separates the p e t from the other plastic pieces, the reaction is very specific to the p t plastic. So if you have a mix of p t and lets say pbc, pbc wont react, and the p h p will. So we can actually separate out different solids from the p t. And then we can actually separate the monomers from the p t. Uh from themselves. She discovered the secret reagents together with our colleagues, party or values, odd a and christopher ireland. Theyre turning their innovation into a business, so we cant show you the whole process, especially not how the Plastic Waste is transformed into this mixture. We did it on a friday night, and after about the 1st 30 minutes, we saw that it was working. And i remember writing to christmas musical, my gosh, its working. And then we decided to wait the entire weekend just to make sure that everything reacted that. You know, we didnt want to stop the reaction to early and get not correct results. And it was the most uh, suspenseful weekend. I think ive had an a really long time cause you knew that when you would go back, that there would be something waiting for you that youve got to explore and analyze. And just by monday, when we showed up, it was more or less exactly like this. Afterwards, the mixture is filtered to obtain the pure Building Blocks to create new plastic. The end product is dest powder. Its called purified propeller gases. Its commonly a source right now from the oil industry. So what they do is they pull out crude oil, it goes through a refining process and they make this white powder. And this powder is used to make any p t item polyester and any sort of plastic that has termite or folic acid in it . Yeah, so we can actually make it now instead of from oil directly from our own waste. So they can extract polyester from clothing and for example, recycled the remaining car. Thats possible because the plastic is removed at Room Temperature and not at high temperature. Their prototypes stands and an incineration plant. Here they have a room where they can build tests and scale up their chemical recycling system. Terrell stomach acid. The basic Building Block for p t is trapped by this filter, but is chemical recycling sustainable. It can be clean, actually the majority of the chemicals that were using for this youve probably, uh, interacted with on a regular basis already. Its either used to make, for example, brands, um its for example, found in tooth paste. So it can be that kind of clean, that sustainable. Uh, that easy to do. Its just choosing the right system, which is what weve developed. And this is what makes our technology really special, is that the chemistry of really simple. So scaling, its really simple. They want to offer the chemical recycling process and world wide. So theyve found that to start out called di pauline and already attracted initial investors. Their innovation could be part of the solution to the global plastic problem. Why do humming does not get drunk. Why do Gravitational Waves squeeze all bodies . How much do we need to put a pond cream for help find beyond says get smaller on dw science outtake talk channel in labs chemist. Create innovative compounds with tailor made characteristics like p size. Their vital ingredients in many products, but they arent found in nature. So we make them our selves. Unfortunately, some p thoughts are also highly toxic. Her and police flu elton substances or defense as an umbrella to put thousands of different chemicals. They do a great job of repelling water grease and it, which is why nearly every branch of industry uses them. Different in non state cook with artificial leather furniture, fire wood, todd and cleaning fluids, electronics, makeup, cars, pesticides, soils, Drinking Water and also use literally as when he 1st pose a serious risk to health on the environment. And worst of all, they never degrade for this reason. That also includes the chemicals and they have an impact on practically for this high concentration is can lead to increase level weight and even cause cancer. Kidneys are at risk to pay phones can also affects the quality of the booth weights of newborns can. Likewise, below it home, the substance is actually work in the body is unclear. According to what i call, this is a restructure cell battery is what scientists do. Notice that the immune response is low is and general clark seems, can be vendor less effective pesos into the soil and watch associates via landfill discharge emissions. Some industrial facilities, commercial waste flow to or simply when we watch rain coats, Wastewater Treatment ponds often con. So to them, the e u is thinking about binding o p fun except for essential ones, like those used in medical equipment. But even if we succeed in outgoing the chemicals, one problem will remain what can be done about the huge amounts of p fast that are already in the environment . Thats a question to which we still have no real lancer. Getting rid of them is like trying to take mill back out of your coffee again after adding it. But despite the difficulties, one attempt is under way at a nato airfield on germanys north sea coast. Its might look like a giant sand box here, but its anything but a playground. This entire area is contaminated, says cost, and hind to from lower section is Building Management all. Lets begin the house bestbuy in time. We assume well need to watch 7 to 800000 tons of or to get the p pass out of the samples. Visa stands for per and poly. Flo roll out kills substances. These include more than 10000. 00 different chemicals in various forms, summer solid, Others Liquid or gas. All p fa