STSMs
Previous STSMs
Each Grant Period (GP) of the COST Action CA20101 – PRIORITY included dedicated calls for Short-Term Scientific Missions (STSMs) to promote mobility, knowledge exchange, and hands-on collaboration among researchers across participating institutions.
These missions supported early-career scientists and experts in gaining practical experience, accessing specialized facilities, and strengthening links within the network.
Over the course of the Action, one call was launched in GP1, followed by two calls per year from GP2 to GP4, ensuring a continuous opportunity for scientific cooperation and skill development.
Previous STsms
Awarded Grants
1 call for STSMs in GP1 (1st call of the Action):
- 01/03/2022 to 31/10/2022
2 calls for STSMs in GP2 (2nd and 3nd call of the Action):
- 01/01/2023 to 31/05/2023
- 01/06/2023 to 31/10/2023
2 calls for STSMs in GP3 (4th and 5th call of the Action):
- 01/01/2024 to 31/05/2024
- 01/06/2024 to 31/10/2024
2 calls for STSMs in GP4 (6th and 7th call of the Action):
- 01/01/2025 to 31/05/2025
- 01/06/2025 to 18/10/2025
Definition of Research Infrastructure Accessibility and Proposal for New Specific Facilities
This report provides an evidence-based assessment of the research infrastructures accessible within the PRIORITY network, drawing from the institutions that expressed interest in hosting STSMs and from the 77 missions completed during the Action.
It maps current capacities, evaluates how infrastructures have been used, and identifies gaps and priorities for future facilities supporting micro- and nanoplastics research.
STSMs
Briefs of previous STSMs
Over the four years of the Action, a total of 77 Short-Term Scientific Missions (STSMs) were successfully completed, demonstrating the strong engagement and collaborative spirit of the PRIORITY network.
These missions supported researchers—particularly early-career scientists—in developing new skills, accessing advanced analytical facilities, and strengthening scientific links across institutions and countries.
The following table provides an overview of all completed STSMs, including the grantees, mission titles, home and host institutions, supervisors, and mission duration.
The bubble map below shows the geographical distribution of all 77 STSMs. For visualization purposes, the map focuses where the majority of missions took place. However, the network also extended beyond Europe, with additional STSMs involving institutions in Canada, the United States, India, and South Korea. Each bubble represents a home or host country, with its size proportional to the number of missions, highlighting the breadth of scientific exchange and collaboration fostered by the Action.
Name | Title of STSM | Home institution | STSM period | Host institution | Host supervisor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nina Maria Ainali | Testing analytical methods for low µm range microplastics (spICP-MS) and nanoplastics (FFF-UV-MALS) | Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece | April 18 to May 15 | Flemish Institute for Technological Research, Mol, Belgium
| Milica Velimirovic |
Balla Alexia | Determine chemical composition of the deposited microplastic items in the sediments of the Tisza River. | University of Szeged, Hungary | April 24 to April 29 2023 | Faculty of Technology, University of Novi Sad, Serbia | Ivan Ristic |
Nigar Alkan | New Trends on Training of Microplastic Analysis in Sediment, Water and Biota | Karadeniz Technical University, trabzon, Turkey
| Sept. 1 to Sept. 30 2022 | Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, National University of Ireland, Galway, Irland | Liam Morrison |
Wajid Ali | Assessing the toxicity and vector roles of Bio-based and Petroleum-based microplastics on model specie of zooplankton | Universite de Lille, France
| June 1 to June 30 2023 | Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, Korea | Jae-Seong Lee
|
Emre Alp
| Remediation, recovery and development of sustainable alternative to plastic materials
| Bartın University, Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Design, Turkey
| Sept. 19 to Oct. 10 2022 | Institute for Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials (CNR), Pozzuoli, Italy | Mariacristina Cocca |
Vaibhav Budhiraja | Comparing the Mechanical Properties of Pristine and Weathered Microplastics with Atomic Force Microscopy | National Institute of Chemistry, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| Oct. 1 to Oct. 22 2023 | The University of Edinburgh, Great Britain | Efthalia Chatzisymeon |
Laura Claro | Sustainable remediation of wastewater polluted by nanoplastics by catalytic AOPs | Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain
| Sept. 24 to Oct. 28 2023 | Institut de Chimie et Procédés pour l’Energie, l’Environement et la Santé (ICPEES), CNRS University of Strasbourg, France
| Nicolas Keller |
Inta Dimante-Deimantovica
| Sampling and preparing microplastic samples from long sediment cores
| Latvian Institute of Aquatic Ecology, Latvia
| March 20 to March 26 2023
| Turku University, Department of geography and geology, Finland | Saija Saarni
|
Ioannis Efstathiadis
| Microplastics extraction
| National and kapodistrian university of Athens, Greece
| July 4 to July 25 2022
| Kristineberg Marine Research Station, Gothenburg, Sweden
| Karin Mattsson |
Svea Franke
| Testing a workflow for the extraction and analysis of microplastics from tidal-flat sediments | University of Bremen, Germany
| Sept. 1 to Sept. 30 2022 | Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, National University of Ireland, Galway, Irland
| Liam Morrison
|
Nur Kaluc
| Investigating Sub-Chronic Toxicity of Polyethylene Terephthalate Nanoplastics on Mice
| Maltepe University Faculty of Medicine, Turkey
| March 20 to March 26 2023 | University of Florence, Italy
| Amedeo Amedei |
Martin Kizovský
| Advanced Raman microspectroscopy techniques for nanoplastics detection in aquatic environments | Institute of Scientific Instruments of the CAS, brno, Czech Republic | Sept. 12 to Oct. 2 2022 | Istituto per I Processi Chimico-Fisici (CNR)l, Messina, Italy
| Pietro G. Gucciardi |
Areti Kokkinomagoula
| Isolation and characterization of microplastics from wastewater | Universiy of Crete, Greece | March 12 to March 19 2023 | University of La Laguna,Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
| Javier Hernández-Borges |
Stefania Koutsourea
| Linking microplastic pollution with geochemical data to determine overall anthropogenic impact on soils | National and Kapodistrian university of Athens, Greece
| Aug. 28 to Sept. 16 2023 | University of Gothenburg, Department of Marine Sciences, Fiskebäckskil, Sweden
| Karin Mattsson |
Ioana Marica
| Surface-enhanced Raman Spectroscopy of nanoplastics on nanostructured plasmonic substrates
| National Institute for Research and Development of Isotopic and Molecular Technologies, Romania
| March 5 to May 2 2023
| Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Padova, Italy
| Roberto Pilot |
Lara Mikac
| Collection and analysis of microplastics in marine sediments
| Rudjer Boskovic Institute, Zagreb, Croatia
| June 12 to June 26 2023 | SINTEF, Trondheim, Norway
| Andy Booth
|
Milan Momcilovic
| Nanoplastics elimination from model solutions by carbon materials obtained from municipal brown waste | Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences, Belgrade
| Sept. 18 to Sept. 28 2023 | Institute of Materials Science of Aragón (ICMA), Zaragosa, Spain
| Scott Mitchell |
Olga Novillo Sanjuan
| Detection, identification and experimental studies about micro- and nano- plastics in the natural environment.
| University of Valencia, Spain
| Feb. 20 to March 20 2023 | Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Lyngby, Denmark | Nanna Hartmann |
Andrea Paluselli
| Microplastic vertical fluxes in the Arctic
| Istituto di Scienze Marine (ISMAR-CNRS), Lerici, Italy
| Feb. 18 to April 1 2023 | Department of the Built Environment, Alborg University, Denmark
| Vianello Alvise |
Ludmila Polechonska
| Microplastics in estuarine sediments-interactions with trace metals and optimizing extraction procedures for vegetated sediments
| University of Wroclaw, Poiland
| Sept. 22 to Oct. 10 2023
| Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Portugal
| Cristina Marisa Ribeiro de Almeida
|
Bence Prikler
| Correlative FTIR microscopy and Pyrolysis–gas-chromatography–mass-spectrometry analysis of microplastics
| Environmental protection, Budapest, Hungary | July 30 to Aug. 6 2023
| Aalborg University, Department of the Built Environment, Aalborg, Denmark
| Alvise Vianello |
Lúcia Santos
| Analysis of microplastics and plastic additives in environmental samples using pyrolysis-GC/MS
| Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), Spain
| April 24 to May 2023 | Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry , University of Pisa, Italy
| Francesca Modugno |
Karolina Sunjog
| Monitoring and sampling MPs
| Institute for multidisciplinary research, Belgrade, Serbia
| Sept. 1 to Sept. 30 2022 | University of La Laguna,Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain | Javier Hernández-Borges |
Ana Molina Rodríguez | Advanced analytical approaches for microplastic detection throughout the water column | Universidad De Las Palmas De Gran Canaria, Spain | Feb. 29 to May 31 2024 | Aalborg University, DK | Alvise Vianello |
SEDA OGUR | – | Bitlis Eren University, Türkiye | Sept. 06 to Sept. 17 2024 | Flemish Institute for Technological Research – VITO, BE | Milica Velimriovic |
Saltuk Ceyhun | Cellular interaction of nano-sized polystyrene particles in the zebrafish larva brain | Atatürk University, Türkiye | Feb. 11 to Feb. 16 2024 | Imaging Methods Core Facility at BIOCEV Faculty of Science, Charles University, CZ | Ales Benda |
Aisha Bibi | Polarimetric analysis of Microplastics | Aston University, United Kingdom | March 22 to May 01 2025 | Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology, DE | Christoph Krafft |
Giosuè Ursoleo | Determination of microplastics in fishery products | Universita Degli Studi Di Parma, Italy | Feb. 05 to June 07 2024 | CIIMAR – Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, PT | Sandra Ramos |
Darko Kostić | Training through research on nanoplastics chemical characterization by TED-GC/MS | Hemijski Fakultet, Univerzitet U Beogradu, Serbia | March 11 to March 31 2024 | Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM), DE | Korinna Altmann |
Luca Muth | Cross-validation of three instrumental methods for the quantitation of tire wear particles in environmental samples | Hochschule Fresenius Gemeinnutzigegmbh, Germany | Sept. 16 to Sept. 27 2024 | Flemish Institute for Technological Research, BE | Milica Velimirovic |
Marie-Astrid DUTOIT | Sample processing and analysis of microplastics by Pyr-GC-MS | IMT Nord Europe, France | Sept. 14 to Sept. 30 2024 | University of La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain, ES | Javier Hernández Borges |
Gábor Bordós | Microplastic sampling and analysis techniques in Finland | Eurofins Analytical Services Hungary Kft, Hungary | May 13 to May 17 2024 | Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Laboratory centre, FI | Markus Sillanpää |
Giulia Nannini | Impacts of nano and microplastic mixtures on the microbiota-immunity axis in C57BL/6J wild-type mouse model | University of Florence, Italy | April 08 to May 03 2024 | Medical University of Vienna -Department of Pathology, AT | Lukas Kenner |
Ece Danisman | Detection of polyethylene terephthalate nanoparticles (PET NPs) in mouse tissues | Medical University of Vienna, Austria | May 31 to June 20 2024 | University of Belgrade, RS | Dragana J. Stanić-Vučinić, |
Nene Meltem Keklik | Investigation of microplastics in seawater or salty water after the degradation of films of chitosan and polylactic acid (PLA) | Sivas Cumhuriyet Universitesi, Türkiye | July 15 to July 31 2024 | Universidade do Algarve, PT | Maria Margarida Cortez Vieira |
Ali Osman Adıgüzel | Determination of Polyethylene Terephthalate and Polyurethane Degradation Potential of esterase from Bacillus tequilensis | University of Ondokuz Mayıs – Kitam, Türkiye | April 01 to April 12 2024 | National Technical University of Athens, GR | Evangelos TOPAKAS |
Cem Hasşerbetçi | Evaluating the toxic effects of nanoplastics on model organisms (freshwater and soil) in Ecotoxicology | Istanbul University, Türkiye | Oct. 06 to Oct. 27 2024 | University of Aveiro/Department of Biology/CESAM/ Applied Ecology and Ecotoxicology Laboratory (applEE lab), PT | Vera Lucia Maria |
Marco Iannaccone | STSM – HDPE Mycodegradation with fungal strains isolated in the Maltese Islands. | Universita’ ta’ Malta, Malta | June 29 to July 07 2024 | Institute for Polymers, Composite and Biomaterials, IT | Mariacristina Cocca |
Valentina Balestra | Microplastics and micropollutants monitoring in karst systems | Politecnico Di Torino, Italy | Oct. 12 to Oct. 25 2024 | University of Valencia, ES | Enrique Javier Carrasco Correa |
Mel Constant | Analysis of small microplastics in atmospheric fallout, soil, sediment and water samples using µFTIR imaging | IMT Nord Europe, France | Sept. 23 to Oct 31 2024 | Aalborg University, DK | Jes Vollertsen |
Nan Wu | Modelling the transport of micro- and nanoplastics in the ocean from surface to sediment | Queen Mary University of London, United Kingdom | Feb. 26 to March 07 2024 | Utrecht University, NL | Erik van Sebille |
Alexandra Foetisch | Nanoplastic identification and characterization by Surface Enhanced Raman Microscopy | Technische Universitat Darmstadt, Germany | Sept. 30 to Oct. 25 2024 | Istituto per i Processi Chimico-Fisici, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, IT | Pietro G. Gucciardi |
Giuliana Bruno | Absorption, translocation and accumulation of nanoplastics in durum wheat | University of Tuscia, Dept. DAFNE, Italy | May 13 to Oct. 31 2024 | Democritus University of Thrace, GR | Ioannis Kourkoutas |
Sinem Hazal Akyildiz | Development of analytical methodologies for detection and analysis of microplastics/microfibers from wastewater | Politecnico Di Torino, Italy | May 20 to June 21 2024 | University of La Laguna, ES | Javier Hernández-Borges |
Sahar Kazemi | Detection and characterization of inhaled PP & PET particles in the lungs of healthy mice and mice with allergic asthma | Medical University of Vienna, Austria | Sept. 22 to Oct. 06 2024 | The University of British Columbia, CA | Sepideh Pakpour |
Lama Ramadan | The effect of microplastics on the soil microbial community and self-cleaning capacity | Gebze Teknik Universitesi, Türkiye | Aug. 09 to Sept. 09 2024 | Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), NL | Ciska Veen |
Maja Vujić (née Lončarski) | Pyrolysis Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (pyrGC-MS) for Characterization of Microplastic Pollution | University of Novi Sad Faculty of Sciences, Serbia | Aug. 26 to Sept. 06 2024 | Flemish Institute for Technological Research, BE | Milica Velimirovic |
Nigar Alkan | Quantification and chemical characterization of microplastics isolated from complex matrices | Karadeniz Technical University, Türkiye | Feb. 05 to March 05 2024 | University of Belgrade – Faculty of Chemistry, RS | Jelena MUTIC |
Christian Rentero | Polymers design for upgrading the enzymatic degradation of polylactic acid | University of Alcala, Spain | April 01 to July 07 2024 | University of Mons, BE | Jean-Marie Raquez |
Veysel DOGAN | Analytical Pyrolysis | Kastamonu University, Türkiye | June 28 to July 14 2024 | University of Bologna, Department of Chemistry “Giacomo Ciamician”, IT | Daniele Fabbri |
Maja Vujić (née Lončarski) | Application of Laboratory Ultra Centrifugal Milling for Microplastic Fragmentation in Test Sample Preparation | University of Novi Sad Faculty of Sciences, Serbia | July 10 to July 31 2025 | Chemistry for Technologies Laboratory; University of Brescia, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, IT | Stefania Federici |
Nan Wu | Impact of sub-mesoscale ocean fronts on the fate and transport of microplastics | British Antarctic Survey, United Kingdom | June 15 to June 29 2025 | Stanford University, US | Leif Thomas |
Dian Burhani | Determination of microplastics in reusable plastic water bottle for toddlers | University of Groningen, Netherlands | April 28 to May 16 2025 | Technical University of Denmark, DK | Nanna Hartmann |
Radwa Saad | PRIORITY’ CA20101 STSM- Integrating Photocatalysis and Bio-fragmentation of Microplastics: unraveling degradation dynamics for enhanced environmental insights | Alexandria University, Egypt | May 01 to June 01 2025 | University of Strathclyde (Simmchen group, Pure and applied chemistry), GB | Juliane Simmchen |
Kamil Urgun | Affordable Innovation in Microplastic Detection: A Cross-Validation Study with Micro-FTIR | Hacettepe Universitesi, Türkiye | Sept. 22 to Oct. 10 2025 | University of La Laguna, ES | Javier Hernández-Borges |
Sinem Hazal Akyildiz | Investigating Microfiber Release from Textiles During Washing: Analytical Assessment | Politecnico Di Torino, Italy | Sept. 20 to Oct. 17 2025 | Aalborg University, DK | Alvise Vianello |
Akhila Rahul | Modification of Pacman-shaped TiO2 particles using Magnetic Polyoxometalate for the collection and degradation of microplastics | University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom | March 15 to April 12 2025 | Instituto de Nanociencia y Materiales de Aragón (INMA-CSIC/UNIZAR), ES | Scott Mitchell |
Serena Ducoli | Study of micro- and nanoplastics toxicity on human cells using environmentally relevant “true-to-life” materials | University of Brescia, Italy | March 01 to May 31 2025 | University of Vienna, Faculty of Life Science, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, AT | Verena Pichler |
Karolina Sunjog | Micro-FTIR Analysis of MPs in Biotic Samples: Advancing Polymer Identification | Institute for multidisciplinary research, Serbia | Sept. 17 to Sept. 25 2025 | University of La Laguna, ES | Javier Hernández-Borges |
Saltuk Ceyhun | Cellular interaction of nano-sized polystyrene particles in the zebrafish larva brain II | Ataturk University, Türkiye | April 21 to April 26 2025 | Imaging Methods Core Facility at BIOCEV Faculty of Science, Charles University, CZ | Ales Benda |
Khadija Ramzan | Extraction of natural pigments from fruits and vegetables by products for industrial polymers and food packaging applications | Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry, Institute of Horticulture, Lithuania | Aug. 04 to Sept. 10 2025 | SELÇUK ÜNİVERSİTESİ, TR | Halit CAVUSOGLU |
Sanda Svipsta | Gaining expertise in drinking water microplastics sampling, device assembly and analysis techniques from host institution | Latvian Institute of Aquatic Ecology, Latvia | March 30 to April 01 2025 | German Water Center, DE | Nicole Zumbülte |
Klaudia Krysiak-Smułek | Testing polyethylene terephthalate on biological materials | Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland | March 09 to Marc 22 2025 | University of Aveiro, PT | Isabel Lopes |
Mustafa Sevim | Exploring Biocorona-Derived Peptides from Nanoplastics for Immunological Interaction Prediction | Marmara University, Türkiye | March 07 to May 08 2025 | Medical University of Vienna, AT | Michelle Epstein |
Francesca Fabrizi | Advancing Harmonized Methodologies for Microplastic Research | Italian National Research Council (CNR), Institute for Biological Resources and Marine Biotechnologies (IRBIM), Italy | May 31 to June 15 2025 | University of La Laguna, ES | Javier Hernández-Borges |
Barbara Klun | Collaborative FTIR Research for Microplastic Aging and Biofilm Interactions in Freshwater Environments | University of Ljubljana, Slovenia | March 12 to March 15 2025 | Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), FI | Markus Sillanpää |
Tanja Kobal | Evaluation of the genotoxic effects of microplastics in Mytilus galloprovincialis using the comet assay | National institute of biology, Slovenia | June 01 to June 12 2025 | Institute for Biological Research “Siniša Stanković”, RS | Margareta Kračun Kolarević |
Maialen Iturralde | Plastics monitoRIng detectiOn RemedIaTion recoverY | ASOCIACION CENTRO DE INVESTIGACION COOPERATIVA EN BIOMATERIALES- CIC biomaGUNE, Spain | Sept. 08 to Sept. 19 2025 | InduBioCat group, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, GR | Evangelos Topakas |
Marta Barone | Learning drinking water microplastics samples collection and treatment methods from the host institution | Latvian Institute of Aquatic Ecology, Latvia | March 31 to April 06 2025 | Center of Environmental Research and Sustainability, University of Hamburg, DE | Elke K. Fischer |
Lara Mikac | Investigating Microplastics and Leachates in Aquatic Environments under UV Irradiation | Ruder Boskovic Institute, Croatia | March 10 to March 21 2025 | Vellore Institute of Technology, IN | Natarajan Chandrasekaran |
Joana Antunes | Training course about pyrolisis to detect microplastics | Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal | Oct. 09 to Oct. 18 2025 | Hochschule für Life Sciences FHNW, CH | Armin Zenker |
Alex King | Comparing and optimising analytical instrumentation for the measurement of inhalable airborne microplastics | UWE, United Kingdom | July 16 to Aug. 12 2025 | Hochschule für Life Sciences FHNW, CH | Armin Zenker |
Miriam Medina García | Grant for Short Term Scientific Missions within PRIORITY | University of Granada, Spain | April 01 to June 30 2025 | University of Milano-Bicocca, IT | Davide Ballabio |
Emanuela Zanardi | Monitoring of microplastics (MPs) in seafood and estimation of dietary intake | Universita Degli Studi Di Parma, Italy | Sept. 24 to Sept. 27 2025 | CIIMAR Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research of the University of Porto, PT | Marisa Almeida |
İrem Öztürk Ufuk | PRIORITY 4th Grant Period | Gebze Teknik Universitesi, Türkiye | March 01 to May 31 2025 | University of Aveiro, PT | Susana Loureiro |
Lama Ramadan | The effect of microplastics on biodegradability of chemical residuals in soil | Gebze Teknik Universitesi, Türkiye | Feb. 10 to March 10 2025 | Wageningen University & Research, NL | EJ (Esmer) Jongedijk |
Chiara Salomone | Peptide Engineering for Nanoplastic Capture: Combining Molecular Simulations and Experimental Validation | Politecnico Di Milano, Italy | March 01 to April 01 2025 | University of Szeged, Hungary | István Szilágyi |
STSMs
Workshops on STSMs
Join the 2nd workshop on PRIORITY Short Term Scientific Missions to be held on June 20, 2023. More info here.
Join the 1st workshop on PRIORITY Short Term Scientific Missions to be held on November 15, 2022 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm (CET). The workshop will focus on the missions approved in the first year of our Action. To begin, the Grant Awarding Coordinator will give a brief introduction to this powerful networking tool....