Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Low-Cost Thermal-Infrared ‘THz-Torch’ Spectroscopy

This paper is not relevant to microplastics research; it describes a low-cost thermal-infrared spectroscopy technique ('THz-Torch') for non-destructive material characterization, demonstrated on glass, semiconductor, ceramic, and plastic materials.

2024 IEEE Access 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Review of Bioplastics Characterisation by Terahertz Techniques in the View of Ensuring a Circular Economy

Not directly relevant to microplastics — this review covers the use of terahertz spectroscopy and imaging for characterising bioplastic materials in the context of quality control and circular economy manufacturing.

2023 Photonics 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Towards a fast and generalized microplastic quantification method in soil using terahertz spectroscopy

Researchers compared terahertz and near-infrared spectroscopy for quantifying microplastics in soil, finding that terahertz spectroscopy offered a faster and more accurate approach than NIR for distinguishing household microplastics from standard reference polymers in soil matrices.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 39 citations
Article Tier 2

Characterizations of high-density polyethylene by terahertz time-domain spectroscopy

Researchers characterized the optical properties of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) particles using terahertz time-domain spectroscopy and found the method can distinguish different particle sizes and filler contents. The technique can also detect how HDPE adsorbs other substances onto its surface. Terahertz spectroscopy could be developed as a rapid, non-destructive tool for identifying and characterizing HDPE microplastics in environmental samples.

2023 Terahertz Science and Technology
Article Tier 2

Study on Rapid Quantitative Detection of Soil MPs Based on Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy

Researchers developed a rapid method for detecting and quantifying microplastics in soil using terahertz time-domain spectroscopy combined with machine learning algorithms. The classification models achieved high accuracy in identifying different types of microplastics including polyethylene, polystyrene, and polypropylene. The study suggests that terahertz spectroscopy could provide a faster and more efficient alternative to current methods for monitoring microplastic contamination in agricultural soils.

2025 Analytical Chemistry 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Detection of Microplastic in Salts Using Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy

Researchers demonstrated that terahertz spectroscopy can detect microplastics embedded in table salt at different concentrations. This technology could offer a new non-destructive method for screening food products for microplastic contamination.

2021 Sensors 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Identification of the Compounds Used in Waste Bottle Caps Using Terahertz Radiation for Sustainable Resource Recycling to Benefit International Cooperation

Not relevant to microplastics — this study proposes using terahertz wave spectroscopy to distinguish between polypropylene and polyethylene plastic bottle caps, addressing the limitations of near-infrared sorting technology in recycling facilities and enabling higher-purity material recovery.

2024 Sustainability 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic detection in soil by THz Time-Domain hyperspectral imaging combined with unsupervised learning analysis

Researchers applied terahertz time-domain hyperspectral imaging combined with multiple unsupervised machine-learning algorithms to detect and spatially map low-density polyethylene microplastics in soil, demonstrating that all five methods consistently separated plastic from soil without requiring labeled training data, establishing a reference-free detection approach.

2026 Environmental Technology & Innovation
Article Tier 2

Optical parameters extraction of soil and its microplastics contamination using terahertz spectroscopy

Researchers used terahertz spectroscopy to detect and quantify low-density polyethylene microplastics mixed into soil at different concentrations, finding that the technique could distinguish contaminated from clean soil based on changes in refractive index and signal attenuation. Terahertz spectroscopy is non-destructive and rapid, making it a potentially valuable tool for in-field soil microplastic screening without the need for laboratory extraction.

2024 Heliyon 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Development of a Compact and Portable Terahertz Imaging System for Industrial Applications

Researchers developed a compact, portable terahertz imaging device suitable for use outside the laboratory, demonstrating its ability to detect microplastics in soil among a range of other applications. While microplastic detection is one of several uses tested, the availability of low-cost, field-deployable detection technology could support faster and broader environmental monitoring of microplastic contamination.

2024 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Identification of Microplastics Using a Custom Built Micro-Raman Spectrometer

Researchers built a custom micro-Raman spectrometer and demonstrated its use for identifying microplastic polymer types in environmental samples, achieving sensitive and specific polymer identification at particle sizes down to a few micrometers.

2023 Journal of Physics Conference Series 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Study on Rapid Recognition of Marine Microplastics Based on Raman Spectroscopy

Researchers developed a rapid identification system for marine microplastics using Raman spectroscopy, enabling quick determination of plastic type and size. Fast, accurate identification tools are critical for monitoring the growing problem of microplastic pollution in ocean environments.

2021 Knowledge Repository of Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, CAS (Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research) 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Contributions of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in microplastic pollution research: A review

This review covers advances in Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy techniques — including chemical imaging — for identifying polymer types in microplastic samples and tracing their fate in different environmental matrices.

2020 Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology 480 citations
Article Tier 2

Detection of microplastics based on splicing grating spatial heterodyne Raman spectroscopy

Researchers developed a new Raman spectroscopy technique using spliced gratings to detect and identify microplastics with improved accuracy and spectral range. The system achieved a spectral resolution of about 5.6 inverse centimeters and successfully identified common microplastic types including polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene. This technology could make field-based microplastic monitoring faster and more reliable than current detection methods.

2024 Spectrochimica Acta Part A Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Detection of microplastics based on spatial heterodyne Raman spectroscopy

Researchers developed a spatial heterodyne Raman spectroscopy method for detecting microplastics, offering advantages over existing techniques by reducing detection time, lowering false detection rates, and using more affordable equipment.

2022 Spectrochimica Acta Part A Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy 23 citations
Article Tier 2

A microwave-based technique as a feasible method to detect plastic pollutants in experimental samples

Researchers developed a non-destructive microwave-based cavity perturbation technique at 2-4 GHz to identify plastic pollutants including polypropylene, LDPE, HDPE, and cross-linked polyethylene, demonstrating that dielectric constant and loss tangent measurements can distinguish polymer types without destroying samples.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Worthwhile Relevance of Infrared Spectroscopy in Characterization of Samples and Concept of Infrared Spectroscopy-Based Synchrotron Radiation

This review examines the usefulness of infrared spectroscopy for characterizing a wide range of sample types, including plastics and environmental materials. It also introduces the concept of synchrotron radiation-based infrared spectroscopy as an advanced analytical tool for high-resolution material characterization.

2020 Journal of Spectroscopy 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Localisation and identification of polystyrene particles in tissue sections using Raman spectroscopic imaging

Researchers developed a Raman spectroscopic imaging method to localize and identify polystyrene microplastic particles directly within tissue sections, enabling in-situ detection without fluorescent labeling and making environmental sample analysis feasible.

2023 NanoImpact 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Synchrotron-based Spectromicroscopy for Microplastic Detection and Characterization

Researchers reviewed how synchrotron-based imaging techniques — which use powerful X-ray beams to see extremely fine details — can detect and chemically identify micro- and nanoplastics that conventional methods miss, including plastics absorbed into biological tissues. These high-resolution tools are still in early stages but show strong potential for mapping microplastic contamination at the nanoscale.

2025 Economic and Environmental Geology
Article Tier 2

High-resolution characterization technology for micro-/nano-plastics

This review provides an overview of advanced technologies for detecting and characterizing micro- and nanoplastics, including Raman spectroscopy, infrared imaging, and mass spectrometry techniques. Researchers evaluated the capabilities and limitations of each method, particularly for identifying the smallest plastic particles that are most challenging to measure. The study emphasizes that improving detection at the nanoscale is essential for accurately assessing the environmental and health risks of plastic pollution.

2024 Journal of Physics D Applied Physics 6 citations