Pure Ocean is a modular floating shield filled with bio-based absorbent materials, designed to capture marine oil spills early and protect fragile coastal ecosystems.
Marine oil pollution does not only come from dramatic accidents. Everyday operations of ships, ports, and coastal industries release oily wastewater and small leaks that silently damage ecosystems and coastal communities.
**The Innovation Opportunity:** Traditional cleanup methods are often slow, expensive, and create secondary pollution (like plastic waste from traditional booms). These solutions are designed for catastrophic events, not for the frequent, small spills that accumulate into serious chronic environmental damage.
Pure Ocean targets this critical gap by providing a sustainable, immediate "first response" tool for routine operations.
Pure Ocean asks a simple question: **Can we give ships and ports a lightweight, biodegradable “first response” shield that stops oil before it spreads — without adding new pollution to the sea?**
Only a fraction of spilled oil is recovered in many incidents, leading to long-term marine life damage.
Cleanup operations are extremely expensive, often costing tens of thousands of dollars per ton of oil recovered.
Small leaks and oily discharge are often ignored but accumulate into serious chronic pollution in ports and harbors.
Limiting spread through immediate, modular defense can significantly reduce damage and simplify later recovery efforts.
Pure Ocean is a modular floating barrier system designed to function as both a containment boom and an absorbent sponge. It combines engineering simplicity with sustainable materials science.
The system consists of interconnected, small, lightweight units (modules) that crews can quickly deploy. This modularity allows the formation of various shapes, from small rings around a specific leak to long, flexible barriers in harbor areas.
The core of each module is filled with **cellulose-based or agricultural-waste-derived materials** that are oleophilic (oil-attracting) and biodegradable. This is the core innovation: it selectively captures oil without introducing new, non-degradable plastic waste into the marine environment.
The shield serves a dual function: it physically **contains** the oil to prevent spread (like a boom), and simultaneously **absorbs** the surface oil (like a sponge). This stops the spread *before* a major cleanup team is needed.
Inspired by industrial design, Pure Ocean turns a complex cleanup process into a simple **deploy – capture – restore** cycle, demonstrating clear feasibility for routine operations.
Units are stored onboard ships or near high-risk zones in ports. Crews quickly deploy modules around the risk zone when a leak is detected or when sensitive operations begin.
The connected modules form a flexible shield that contains the spill. The bio-based core selectively attracts and absorbs oil on the water surface, halting its spread.
Modules are collected. Absorbed oil can be removed and units reused, or the biodegradable cores can be safely treated, minimizing solid waste and restoration time.
Pure Ocean is designed with real customers and partners in mind, linking environmental impact directly to operational value.
For vessel operators, minimizing spills means reducing downtime, avoiding fines, and managing reputational risk.
Ports are high-risk zones. Pure Ocean provides a scalable solution to protect local waters and infrastructure.
Fisheries, tourism, and everyday life depend on healthy seas. Our solution protects local livelihoods and ecosystems.
Pure Ocean sits at the intersection of materials science, marine engineering, and real-world operations. We aim to be as simple to use as a life jacket, but as smart as a modern environmental tool.
We are exploring low-cost, high-efficiency materials (like modified cellulose or specific agricultural waste) that selectively absorb oil. This key innovation ensures we avoid replacing oil pollution with plastic waste.
The system’s "building block" design is crucial for feasibility. It ensures easy storage, allows for deployment by small crews, and enables flexible adaptation to various spill shapes and sizes.
The system is designed to work with existing ship and port procedures: quick deployment from standard storage racks and compatibility with oil–water separation and existing waste handling logistics.
Our innovation delivers value across three critical dimensions, aligning with global ESG standards and operational efficiency.
Early containment limits the spread of oil, directly protecting sensitive shorelines, marine life, and coastal livelihoods (fisheries, tourism).
By providing immediate first-response containment, Pure Ocean reduces the complexity and scale of follow-up professional cleanup.
We grew up near water — cycling along rivers, visiting coastlines, and watching pollution slowly transform places we loved. Pure Ocean began with sadness about what we saw, and determination to change it through science and design.
As high school students from China, we decided to turn that feeling into action. Through intensive research, brainstorming, and mentor feedback, we developed a biodegradable oil-spill shield designed for real marine operations.
The Conrad Challenge provides us with a crucial platform to refine this idea, test it against global standards, and connect with experts who can help bring it closer to real-world use. We are driven by learning, feasibility, and a genuine commitment to ocean health.
Team Lead & Product Design
Business & Finance
Technology & Prototyping
Outreach & Partnerships
Marine pollution analysis, regulation review, absorbent material research, and concept finalization (Completed).
Detailed system architecture design, modular geometry finalization, and initial feasibility assessment.
Small-scale model construction, lab testing of absorbency rates, and core material selection based on performance/cost.
Seeking partners for real-world testing (universities, ports, or shipping companies) and iterating based on field data.
We are actively seeking **mentors, advisors, and partners** with experience in marine engineering, environmental technology, shipping, or material science to help us refine and validate Pure Ocean.
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* This website represents an early-stage concept for the Conrad Challenge and does not yet represent a commercial product.