Detection of Microplastics using Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy - A first approach

Paper ID: 
cest2021_00150
Topic: 
Microplastics in water treatment: fate, toxicity assessment and removal technologies
Published under CEST2021
Proceedings ISBN: 978-618-86292-1-9
Proceedings ISSN: 2944-9820
Authors: 
(Corresponding) Sommer C., Schneider L., Nguyen J., Prume J., Lautze K., Koch M.
Abstract: 
The worldwide inability to enforce effective plastic guidelines results in an increasing accumulation of microplastics in natural habitats. Since this problem is in need of human intervention, we propose Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) as a new tool to identify microplastics. Our results illustrate that LIBS could be a method to identify microplastics from the environment. Based on the spectral fingerprint of different plastic types, microplastics seem to be distinguishable from non-plastic materials and from their base polymer.
Keywords: 
Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), Microplastic, Identification, Sediment Sample, Plastic Pollution