Replacing Potential Sources of Microplastics in Building Care Product Formulations

OVERVIEW

Diversey (a Solenis Company), the Seeker for this Innocentive Challenge, is looking for eco-friendly substitutes for traditional polymer compounds used in one of Diversey’s building care products.

Microplastics, tiny plastic particles of less than 5 millimeters in size, are a growing environmental concern. First, microplastics may accumulate in the environment, causing harm and potentially disrupting ecosystems. Second, preliminary data suggests that microplastic ingestion may have negative effects on human health.

Not surprisingly, microplastics are rapidly becoming a focus of regulatory scrutiny, with some regulations on microplastic use already in place and further, more restrictive, regulations expected.

We at Diversey want to proactively replace traditional polymer ingredients in our products with more eco-friendly options, without the potential for forming microplastics.

The objective of this Challenge is to replace such ingredients in one of our building care products, while fully preserving the properties of the product, including its physical and chemical characteristics.

Do you have any questions or need assistance? Feel free to join us in our Challenge Space! If you're interested in learning more about the Evaluators' requirements for this Challenge, we invite you to participate in our upcoming webinar.

Your IP Rights are protected in this Prize Challenge; Diversey must pay you an award to obtain them.

The best solution has the opportunity to win the award of $10,000 for meeting all solution requirements. The Challenge requires a written proposal to be submitted, and Awards will be contingent upon the theoretical evaluation of your proposal by Diversey against the Solution Requirements.

To receive an Award, Solvers are required to grant non-exclusive license rights to the Intellectual Property (IP) in their proposed solution. Solvers will retain all rights to any proposal not Awarded and there is no assignment.

Submissions to this Challenge must be received by 11:59 PM (US Eastern Time) on January 26th, 2026.

Please review the later Participation Guidance section before submitting a proposal.

- Login or register your interest to start solving!

ABOUT THE SEEKER & ELIGIBILITY

Solenis is a leader in water and hygiene solutions, partnering with our customers to improve the environment and make the world safer. As a trusted partner, we deliver value by solving sustainability and operational challenges with the right people, the right experience and the right technology. Our solutions help conserve natural resources and promote cleaner and safer environments. For more than 100 years, customers have trusted us to deliver value-driven, tailor-made solutions, advanced insights, measurable results and service that is second to none. We hope that you will join us on this journey by taking part in this Wazoku Crowd Challenge.

Employees of Solenis, their family members, and company affiliates are ineligible to receive an award for this Challenge.
 

THE CHALLENGE

Background

Microplastics, tiny plastic particles of less than 5 millimeters in size, are a growing environmental concern. First, microplastics may accumulate in the environment, causing harm and potentially disrupting ecosystems. Second, preliminary data suggest that microplastic ingestion may have negative effects on human health.

Not surprisingly, microplastics are rapidly becoming a focus of regulatory scrutiny, with some regulations on microplastic use already in place and further, more restrictive, regulations expected.

Bearing in mind our consumers’ best interests, we at Diversey want to proactively replace potential sources of microplastics in our products with more eco-friendly options.

The objective of this Challenge, therefore, is to replace two traditional polymer ingredients in one of our building care products with substitutes that cannot form microplastics, while fully preserving the properties of the product, including its physical and chemical characteristics.

The Challenge

More specifically, we want to modify the following water-based formulation we use to treat hard floors of industrial and residential buildings:

• Acrylic emulsion polymer (50%, w/w), which forms the main film-laying component and provides durability and protection to the surface.
• Polyethylene wax emulsion (4-5%, w/w). This polymer is added to increase protection against wear and tear, as well as impact other performance properties.
• Coalescent package (8-10%, v/w) that includes plasticizers that do not evaporate and are considered a part of the solids of the film and glycol ether solvents that evaporate during drying. Some are considered Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) while others are exempt (while limited to <1% VOC).
• Additives (<1%, w/w), such as wetting agents, defoamers, preservatives, etc.
• Water (remainder of make-up).

The objective of this Challenge is to find an eco-friendly substitute for the acrylic and polyethylene components of the formulation while preserving the properties of the end-product, including its physical and chemical characteristics. Acrylic and polyethylene polymers have the potential to be sources of microplastics although there is no current link known between hard floor treatments and microplastic formation.

The product properties to be preserved include, but are not limited to: durability, non-slip, cost/sq ft, capex vs consumable spend, substrate adherence/adhesion, aesthetics (clear and gloss), good shelf stability (2 years), and preferably applied with current methods.

They should be soluble in water and be completely compatible with other components of the formulation (plasticizers and glycol ether solvents). Also, they should preserve, as much as possible, the physical and chemical characteristics of the formulation:

• High abrasion resistance, reported as weight loss in milligrams (mg) per abrasion cycle (ASTM D4060).
• Adhesion strength, a measure of bonding integrity between the coating and the substrate, expressed in MPa or as percentage adhesion retained after exposure (ASTM D3359 or ISO 2409).
• Slip resistance, with the coefficient of friction (COF) being ≥ 0.60.
• ≥50 Gloss Units (ASTM D523 or ISO 2813).
• Shelf stability in ambient conditions for at least 2 years.
• Full compatibility with the roller and spray applications of the coating to the wooden floors.

The proposed substitutes must be environmentally friendly and completely safe for human operators. More specifically:

• They should be formaldehyde-free and PFAS-free.
• They should display VOC <1.0% (must pass Diversey regulatory review).
• They should not require any additional personal protective equipment (PPE) compared to the current product during formulation or application of the floor finish.

Ideally, they should be readily biodegradable.

SOLUTION REQUIREMENTS

We’re open to any innovative approach, as long as the proposed substitute meets the following Solution Requirements:

1. The proposed substitute is not a potential source of microplastics.
2. The proposed substitute is eco-friendly, meaning, in particular, being formaldehyde free, PFAS free, VOC <1.0% (must pass Diversey regulatory review).
3. The proposed substitute should not require any additional personal protective equipment (PPE) during product formulation, manufacturing, or in use of the floor finish by Diversey’s customers (when compared to current products); higher hazard/PPE use will score lower upon evaluation.
4. The proposed substitute is preferably commercially available and if so, can easily be bought at bulk and at a price not exceeding $25/kg.
5. For ingredients not currently commercially available, the rationale for their future supply chain availability should be made (e.g., agricultural waste by-product).

Important! We’re willing to consider polymer compounds that are readily biodegradable.

Solutions that work within current microplastics exemptions (where microplastic regulations are in place) will be considered but solutions that don’t rely on current exemptions are preferred.

Solutions with Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) 2-5 are invited.

This Prize Challenge has the following features:

1. Your IP Rights are protected; Diversey must pay you an award to obtain them.
2. The best solution has the opportunity to win the award of $10,000 for meeting all solution requirements. 
3. The Challenge requires a written proposal to be submitted, and Awards will be contingent upon the theoretical evaluation of your proposal by Diversey against the Solution Requirements.
4. To receive an Award, Solvers are required to grant non-exclusive license rights to the Intellectual Property (IP) in their proposed solution.
5. Solvers will retain all rights to any proposal not Awarded and there is no assignment.
6. Diversey may issue “Honourable Mention” recognitions for notable submissions that are not selected for monetary awards.
7. Diversey may wish to partner with the Solver at the conclusion of the Challenge. Please indicate your interest in partnering. 

YOUR SUBMISSION

Please login and register your interest, to complete the submission form.

The submitted proposals must be written in English and can include:

1. Participation Type – you will first be asked to inform us how you are participating in this challenge, as a Solver (Individual) or Solver (Organization).
2. Solution Level - the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of your solution.
3. Partnering - there may be an opportunity to partner at the conclusion of this Challenge. Please indicate if partnering is of interest to you.
4. Problem & Opportunity - highlight the innovation in your approach to the Problem, its point of difference, and the specific advantages/benefits this brings (up to 500 words).
5. Solution Overview - detail the features of your solution and how they address the SOLUTION REQUIREMENTS (500 words, there is space to add more in the summary field, and attach supporting data, diagrams, etc.).
6. Solution Feasibility – Supporting Information and Rationale; to include your proposed substitute's commercial availability (easily bought at bulk at a price not exceeding $25/kg) - if not currently available the rationale for its future supply chain availability; all your rationale will help Diversey evaluate and validate the feasibility of the solution (up to 500 words).
7. Experience - Expertise, use cases and skills you or your organization have in relation to your proposed solution (up to 500 words).
8. Solution Risks - any risks you see with your solution and how you would plan for this (up to 500 words).
9. Timeline, capability, and costs - describe what you think is required to deliver the solution, estimated time and cost (up to 500 words).
10. Online References - provide links to any publications, articles or press releases of relevance (up to 500 words).

PARTICIPATION GUIDANCE

1. Submission Close Date: Submissions to this Challenge must be received by 11:59 PM (US Eastern Time) on January 26th, 2026.
2. Late submissions: Late submissions will not be considered.
3. Multiple submissions, 3 Maximum: In case of multiple submissions by the same Solver, only 3 submissions – the final 3 submitted – will be considered. Any other submissions will be deleted prior to evaluation.
4. Submission form and attachments: Your submission will be evaluated by the evaluation team first reviewing the information and content you have submitted at the submission form, with attachments used as additional context to your form submission. Submissions relying solely on attachments will receive less attention from the evaluation team.
5. Evaluation notification steps: After the Challenge submission close date, Diversey will review and select the winning ideas/solutions according to the timeline in the Challenge header. Everyone who submits a proposal will be notified about the status of their submissions.
6. Use of AI: Please note that any submissions produced solely with generative AI are not of interest.
7. Learn more: Find out more about participation in Innocentive Challenges.