2026 Internship Opportunities

Microplastics are a persistent pollutant found throughout the environment that have been shown to negatively affect ecosystems and human health. Many microplastics are less dense than water and will accumulate in the surface of lakes, rivers, and oceans where they can potentially be remediated and removed. The goal of this work is to study how microplastics are transported in waves at the free surface and how wavy flows can be generated to aid collection of microplastics. The research will be conducted in a lab with floating particles in a tank and a prototype floating robotic microplastic collector. Topics include the influence of waves and microplastic characteristics on the efficiency of particle collection and studying how surface flows can locally concentrate microplastics for targeted removal.

The student will help design and run experiments in the laboratory, collect data, and analyze data. The student will use cameras and image analysis to analyze the data.

The student will build knowledge about fluid dynamics and ocean flows. They will also gain insight into microplastics pollution and remediation strategies. They will have firsthand experience working with a robotic device in the lab and analyzing data.

Students should have a scientific/mathematic background and have taken the typical two introductory semesters of physics and math.

Prior experience with analytical and visualization software (e.g., Matlab, Python, or R).

Laptop for analysis required.

• Students will meet with internship mentors in the spring, prior to the internship start date. Reading materials may also be provided.
• Students are responsible for securing accommodations for the duration of their internship. On-campus summer housing is typically available the first week of June until the first week of August (details to become available in Spring 2026). If the internship falls outside of on-campus housing availability, students will need to secure alternate housing.