ECOpole 2025: Nano and Microrobots for Environmental Remediation
Martin Pumera*
CEITEC – Brno University of Technology, Czech Republic
ABSTRACT Microrobots are rapidly gaining attention as powerful instruments for environmental remediation. Operating at the nano- to microscale, these autonomous machines can: a) Eliminate trace organic pollutants such as hormones; b) Catalytically degrade pesticides and nitroaromatic compounds; c) Adsorb and degrade micro- and nanoplastics from aquatic systems; d) Disrupt and remove resilient biofilms. This talk highlights the innovative designs, propulsion strategies and reaction mechanisms that underpin these capabilities, surveys recent proof-of-concept demonstrations, and assesses the key technological and regulatory challenges that must be addressed before large-scale deployment. Finally, it outlines promising research directions and sketches a roadmap for translating microrobotic technologies into sustainable, real-world solutions.
Keywords*: Microrobots, environmental remediation, autonomous systems, pollutant degradation, microplastics, biofilms, aquatic systems, propulsion strategies*
References
1. Mario Urso, Martina Ussia & Martin Pumera, Smart micro- and nanorobots for water purification, Nature Reviews Bioengineering 2023, 1, 236–251
2. C.C. Mayorga-Martinez, L. Zhang, M. Pumera, Chemical multiscale robotics for bacterial biofilm treatment, Chem. Soc. Rev., 2024,53, 2284-2299
3. Mario Urso, Martina Ussia, Filip Novotný, Martin Pumera, Trapping and detecting nanoplastics by MXene-derived oxide microrobots, Nature Communications 2022, 3573, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-31161-2
4. Pumera et al, Technology Roadmap of Micro/Nanorobots, ACS Nano 2025, https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.5c03911
