Úna is a fourth year PhD student in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Waterloo, working under the supervision of Professor Rodney Smith. She is part of the Microplastics Fingerprinting project, a multidisciplinary initiative involving over 30 team members, including faculty, graduate students, and support staff. The team’s diverse expertise brings a holistic perspective to tackling the complex challenges of plastic pollution.
Úna’s research focuses on the identification of microplastic particles using advanced analytical chemical techniques, such as Raman spectroscopy. By combining machine learning models with a database of Raman spectra, Úna can rapidly identify the polymer structure of unknown plastic particles collected from the environment. Her work benefits from the generous contribution of microplastic particles from Lake Ontario and Lake Huron, provided by local charity Pollution Probe. Despite the extreme environmental degradation of these samples, Úna developed machine learning models capable of identifying the plastics. Her innovations improve current methods by accelerating the identification process and eliminating the need for pre-processing of the particles.
Úna’s interest in environmental science began at a young age, inspired by a Royal Institution Christmas Lecture in London, England on the effects of Global Warming. This experience influenced her academic journey, leading her to pursue a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry at the University of York, UK. She furthered her expertise there through a Master of Science degree, with a distinction in Green Chemistry and Sustainable Industrial Technology. Her master’s thesis focused on the degradation of plant-derived solvents in the atmosphere.
As Úna approaches the completion of her PhD, she is exploring the use of a flow-cell device to enhance the efficiency of plastic particles detection and quantify the concentration of each polymer type in water samples. She also aims to compile and publish a selection of Raman maps to serve as a valuable resource for other researchers studying microplastics identification through Raman spectroscopy.