'Curious Conversations' podcast: Hosein Foroutan talks about microplastics, the ocean, and the atmosphere
Hosein Foroutan joined Virginia Tech’s “Curious Conversations” to talk about microplastics, the ocean, and the atmosphere. He explained what microplastics are and shared recent findings that indicate such waste is somehow making its way into the air around the world. He also described some of the research he’s doing to figure out how this is happening and shared his current theories.
About Foroutan
Foroutan is assistant professor in the Charles E. Via, Jr. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and a faculty affiliate of the Global Change Center in the Fralin Life Sciences Institute. His research interests include atmospheric science, aerosols, air quality, environmental flows, and microplastics.
Takeaways
Researchers can generally only account for about 10 percent percent of the plastic waste believed to be in the oceans, and the state of the remaining 90 percent is largely unknown. This is known as the "plastic paradox."
Evidence of microplastics has been found all over the globe, including remote places such as the North and South poles.
Foroutan believes the two most likely culprits for this spread are ocean spray moving microplastics into the air from the ocean and the dust from tire wear particles floating into the atmosphere.
Learn more
Researching a possible hazard in the ocean air
Hosein Foroutan receives NSF CAREER Award to understand how plastic particles are aerosolized
A trans-Atlantic journey: how microbes and dust travel from Africa to the Americas
About the podcast
"Curious Conversations" is a series of free-flowing conversations with Virginia Tech researchers that take place at the intersection of world-class research and everyday life. Produced and hosted by Virginia Tech writer and editor Travis Williams, university researchers share their expertise and motivations as well as the practical applications of their work in a format that more closely resembles chats at a cookout than classroom lectures. New episodes are shared each Tuesday.
