IMDC, as part of an international consortium, contributed to the design of a Marine And River Cleaner (MARC). The cleaner uses a bubble curtain to guide the plastic waste to a collector device, without hampering navigation. The aim of the project is to develop a flexible design that can be adapted for optimal efficiency depending on the local conditions. This goal is achieved by developing a digital twin of the cleaner and its environment, based on 3D simulation models on different spatial scales.
IMDC’s consortium partners contributed by collecting experimental data on the behaviour of plastics in water, designing low-flow turbines to generate power for the system, by developing an inline microplastic sensor to mount to MARC, and by designing the actual platform and systems.