The Daily Bulletin Archive

Please join the Chemistry and Physics departments for the seminar "Identification Methods of Microplastics," presented by Kris Hoyt, forensic science master's degree student, on Thursday, April 11, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Science and Mathematics Complex 173.

Microplastics (MPs) are defined as small plastic particles less than 5 mm in diameter and can be divided into primary and secondary MPs. Primary MPs are manufactured with a diameter less than 5 mm and primarily used as exfoliants and industrial abrasives. On the other hand, when large plastic pieces like bottles and bags break down into fine particles through photochemical or mechanical means, these are referred to as secondary MPs. MPs can cause significant damage to the lowest level of the marine food chain, potentially blocking the digestive tract and translocating to other parts of small marine organisms. The first step in potentially treating bodies of water for MPs is determining the quantity, location, and type of MPs within a specific body of water. The identification of MPs is an environmentally important issue because this may help track the source of the microplastics and stop the incoming flow of the harmful contaminants into the environment; however, fast and reliable ways to detect them have yet to be established. The first part of this talk will cover the treatment methods of MPs collected from the North Sea and the results of their analysis using Raman and FT-IR spectroscopy. Next, thermal degradation method coupled with thermal desorption GC-MS will be discussed, which was used to analyze MPs within water samples collected from the Rhine River. The strengths and weaknesses of these identification methods and the prospects for MPs research will be presented at the end of this talk.