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Portable Microplastics Electrochemical Sensor: Combining Experiment and Density Functional Theory

2025 Score: 38 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
J. Liu, Wanqing Wu, Wanqing Wu, Jiaqi Niu, Jiaqi Niu, Ye Ning, Ziyang Zhang, Jing Cheng

Summary

Researchers developed a portable electrochemical sensor for on-site microplastic detection in water, integrating density functional theory (DFT) calculations to elucidate electron transfer mechanisms at the sensor interface. The device, controlled via smartphone, demonstrated a sensitive electrochemical response to microplastics in environmental water samples, offering a new paradigm for in-situ pollution monitoring.

The challenge of rapidly monitoring in-situ of microplastic pollution in environmental necessitates moving beyond conventional detection methods. In this study, a novel portable electrochemical sensing approach, guided by density functional theory (DFT) calculations, was developed. The platform integrates a three-electrode system with a portable electrochemical workstation, enabling on-site analysis of water samples from the environmental via a smartphone-controlled interface for data acquisition and processing. DFT computations were employed to gain a deep insight into the interaction mechanisms between microplastics and the sensor interface, elucidating the electron transfer processes and key interactive forces. The experimental results demonstrated a significant and sensitive electrochemical response of the portable sensor against microplastics. This work successfully bridges theoretical modeling with experimental validation and provide a novel paradigm for the development of high-performance detection technologies for on-site microplastic analysis.

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