A 19-year-old student from Virginia, United States, developed a water filter prototype that removes 95.52% of microplastics from contaminated samples, while recovering and reusing 87.15% of the filter material.

Mia Heller, a student at Kettle Run High School, earned recognition at the 2025 Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, the world’s largest science competition for high school students. She placed second in environmental engineering and received a $500 prize from the American Patent and Trademark Office Society.

The motivation came from home. After learning that her city of Warrenton’s water supply was contaminated with microplastics and PFAS (with no government action planned), Heller began experimenting in her own garage and kitchen in 2024. Her family’s filtration system required constant membrane replacements. That pushed her to design a membrane-free alternative: cheaper and self-sustaining.

The solution uses ferrofluid, a canola-based oil containing magnetic particles. These particles selectively bind to plastic fragments as water flows through the system. The final prototype has three modules: a reservoir for contaminated water, one for the ferrofluid, and a smaller third chamber where a magnetic field extracts the microplastics and recovers the fluid in a closed loop.

To validate her results, Mia also developed a turbidity sensor prototype. The full device is roughly the size of a bag of flour and filters about one liter of water at a time, designed for home use, to sit under the kitchen sink.

The project’s significance goes beyond the experiment itself. Microplastics have been detected in human brain tissue, fetal placentas, bones, and semen. Their concentration in the human brain grew by 50% in less than a decade, according to a 2025 study from the University of New Mexico.

Exposure to these particles is linked to higher risks of cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and hormonal disorders. By offering a membrane-free, chemical-free solution with low maintenance costs, Heller’s system has the potential to reach communities that currently lack access to effective filtration technology.

From an environmental standpoint, the method’s main advantage is its closed-loop design. By recovering and reusing the ferrofluid, the system generates less waste than conventional filters.

The remaining challenge is the high production cost of ferrofluid at an industrial scale, which currently limits its use to households. Mia said she plans to submit her results for independent professional validation before considering commercialization.

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Fashion Mix Intelectualidade was a pop-up event organized by Michelle Jamur and Cláudia Leal, held from April 8 to 11 at the Breton store in Curitiba, Brazil.

A sustainability talk with Juliana Jabour and guests took place on April 9.

UGREEN’s participation: Ana Julia Kfouri, engineer and partner at UGREEN, was one of the guests at the sustainability talk alongside Juliana. The central theme was sustainable consumption, covering both fashion and construction.

About Breton: a Brazilian company focused on original design and furniture. For every order placed, a tree is planted, and it is the only carbon-negative furniture company in the world.

Isolated housed in American suburbs became symbols of success. A front lawn, a two-car garage, and the whole world learned to “want” this.

But no one chose to build this model. It was designed with a purpose.

After World War II, the U.S. government created 30-year loans with 10% down payments for ordinary citizens. For soldiers, the down payment was zero. Homeownership skyrocketed, but it came with conditions: standardized houses and homogeneous neighborhoods, with no room for innovation.

On top of that, the government enforced a racist practice called redlining. Neighborhoods with Black or mixed-race populations were denied financing, under the excuse of “protecting property values”. The result was state-sponsored racial segregation.

The highways came next. The government covered 90% of the costs to demolish older neighborhoods. Communities were cut in half. Those with money moved to the suburbs. Those without were left behind.

Watch the full video on Youtube and see how all of this happened, and how the same system is still shaping American suburbs today.

Disclaimer: The video is in Brazilian Portuguese, but simultaneous translation and subtitles are available in multiple languages.