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Adding depth to microplastics
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Current analytical methods for microplastics only capture two-dimensional information about particle shape, missing the third dimension — depth — which is needed to accurately estimate particle volume and mass. Researchers proposed that depth information, combined with standard 2D shape measurements, could significantly improve estimates of how much plastic mass is actually present in a sample. Better volume and mass estimates are critical for understanding the true scale of microplastic pollution and for converting particle counts into more meaningful measurements.
Available analytical techniques do not allow for a complete characterization of the 1 to 5000 µm Microplastic (MP) continuum. Spectroscopic techniques provide information on MP polymer identity and 2D morphological aspects but not on the third dimension: depth. Based on 2D shape characteristics and depth, particle volume can be estimated, which is crucial for accurate particle number to mass conversions and risk assessments that use ingested particle volume as an ecologically relevant metric. Depth (or height) and estimated volume usually are estimated using various approaches, which however rarely have been validated. Here we evaluate a new validation approach that uses the collective volume of environmentally relevant MP mixtures, rather than validation based on volumes of individual particles. A sample of MPs from Singapore's beach was divided into three groups: Also see: https://micro2022.sciencesconf.org/427214/document
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