Excitation–Emission Fluorescence Mapping Analysis of Microplastics That Are Typically Pollutants

Syed Iqrar, Aisha Bibi, Raghavan Chinnambedu Murugesan, Daniel Hill, Alex Rozhin*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) pose a significant threat to marine and human life due to their immense toxicity. To protect these ecosystems, the development of reliable technologies for MNP detection, characterisation, and removal is vital. While FTIR and Raman spectroscopy are established methods for MNP analysis, fluorescence (FL) spectroscopy has recently emerged as a promising alternative. However, most prior research relies on FL emission probing with a single excitation wavelength for MNP detection. In this study, we introduce a two-dimensional (2D) fluorescence excitation–emission (FLE) mapping method for the detection of commonly found microplastics, namely polystyrene (PS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polypropylene (PP). The FLE mapping technique enables the collective recording of emission spectra across a range of excitation wavelengths, revealing the dominant excitation–emission features of different microplastics. This research advances the field by offering a non-destructive and label-free identification of MNP contamination through the use of FL spectral fingerprints.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)488-500
Number of pages13
JournalPhotochem
Volume4
Issue number4
Early online date28 Nov 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2024

Bibliographical note

Copyright © 2024 World Health Organization. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution IGO License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/legalcode), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. In any reproduction of this article there should not be any suggestion that WHO or this article endorse any specific organisation or products. The use of the WHO logo is not permitted. This notice should be preserved along with the article's original URL.

Data Access Statement

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors on request.

Keywords

  • fluorescence spectroscopy
  • label-free sensing
  • microplastic detection

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