Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Protocol for Microplastics Sampling on the Sea Surface and Sample Analysis. [video article]

This methods paper and companion video describe a standardized protocol for sampling microplastics from the sea surface using a manta net, then processing and chemically identifying particles using microscopy and FTIR spectroscopy. Standardized sampling methods are critical for producing comparable microplastic data across different research groups and monitoring programs.

2016 IOC of UNESCO (Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission) 32 citations
Article Tier 2

Protocol for Microplastics Sampling on the Sea Surface and Sample Analysis

This paper presents a standardized protocol for sampling microplastics from the ocean surface using a manta trawl net, covering methods for sample preparation, separation, and chemical identification. Standardized sampling and analysis methods are critical so that data from different research teams can be meaningfully compared.

2016 Journal of Visualized Experiments 85 citations
Article Tier 2

Comparison between the traditional Manta net and an innovative device for microplastic sampling in surface marine waters

Researchers compared a traditional Manta trawl net to an innovative sampler called MuMi for collecting microplastics from sea surface water, finding the MuMi offered advantages in ease of use, lower cost, and capturing smaller particles, while both methods revealed variability driven by sampling mesh size.

2022 Marine Pollution Bulletin 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Methods for microplastic sampling and analysis in the seawater and fresh water environment

This review summarized and compared sampling and analysis methods for microplastics in marine and freshwater environments — including trawls, manta nets, pump filtration, FTIR, and Raman spectroscopy — and called for standardization to enable cross-study comparisons of pollution levels.

2021 Methods in enzymology on CD-ROM/Methods in enzymology 27 citations
Article Tier 2

Manta Net: The Golden Method for Sampling Surface Water Microplastics in Aquatic Environments

This review evaluated the manta net as the standard method for sampling surface water microplastics, comparing different net devices and sampling protocols used across studies while highlighting the need for methodological standardization in microplastic research.

2022 Frontiers in Environmental Science 93 citations
Article Tier 2

Subsampling microplastics for chemical characterization and confirmation: assessing efficiency and discussing reliability risks

Researchers systematically reviewed subsampling strategies used in microplastic marine contamination studies and assessed how common approaches affect the efficiency and reliability of FTIR-based chemical characterisation. The study identified widespread use of subsampling and evaluated associated risks of sampling bias and inaccurate abundance estimates.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Comparative study of three sampling methods for microplastics analysis in seawater

Researchers compared three microplastic sampling methods for seawater — direct 0.45 µm filtration, 20 µm pre-concentration followed by 0.45 µm filtration, and Manta trawl with 150 µm mesh — finding orders-of-magnitude differences in reported abundance across methods, underscoring the critical need for standardized protocols.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 111 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in different water samples (seawater, freshwater, and wastewater): Methodology approach for characterization using micro-FTIR spectroscopy

Researchers developed a standardized methodology for detecting and characterizing small microplastics (10-500 micrometers) in different water types using micro-FTIR spectroscopy. The study tested various sample preparation approaches for seawater, freshwater, and wastewater, establishing reliable protocols for rinsing, digestion, and microplastic collection that can be used to assess treatment plant removal efficiency.

2023 Water Research 67 citations
Article Tier 2

Micro- and mesoplastics in sea surface water from a Northern Adriatic coastal area

Researchers collected plastic particles from two sea surface monitoring transects near the Venice Lagoon using a manta net and characterized them by typology, dimension, color, spatial density, and chemical composition using a multi-technique analytical approach. They identified distinct subgroups of plastic micro-debris in this Northern Adriatic coastal area and documented the widespread presence of polymeric materials in surface seawater.

2022 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Comparison between manta trawl and in situ pump filtration methods, and guidance for visual identification of microplastics in surface waters

This methodological study compared manta trawl and in situ pump filtration approaches for sampling surface water microplastics, providing guidance for consistent visual identification of plastic particles. Standardizing sampling and identification methods is critical for making meaningful comparisons between different research studies.

2019 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 194 citations
Article Tier 2

Critical steps for microplastics characterization from the atmosphere

This systematic review of atmospheric microplastic sampling and characterization methodologies finds that divergent results across studies stem from inconsistent collection and pre-treatment methods, and that the choice of characterization technique (FTIR vs. Raman) should be matched to the MPs' origin and environmental matrix.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 47 citations
Article Tier 2

A systematic protocol of microplastics analysis from their identification to quantification in water environment: A comprehensive review

This review provides a systematic protocol for identifying and quantifying microplastics in water environments, covering sampling, extraction, and analytical techniques. Researchers evaluate the strengths and limitations of methods including visual sorting, spectroscopic analysis, and thermal techniques for characterizing microplastic pollution. The study emphasizes the urgent need for standardized methodologies to enable meaningful comparisons across different microplastic research studies.

2020 Journal of Hazardous Materials 150 citations
Article Tier 2

Global measurement of surface water microplastics using a unified size threshold

A globally deployable measurement approach was developed for monitoring microplastics on water surfaces using a unified protocol applicable across different geographic regions. Standardized global measurement methods are critical for generating comparable data needed to assess the scale of ocean plastic pollution.

2025 Water Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Assessment of manta trawling and two newly-developed surface water microplastic monitoring techniques in the open sea

Researchers evaluated three surface water microplastic sampling systems in the mid-North Pacific Ocean — conventional manta trawling, a trawl-underway pump combination with in-situ Y-shaped filtration (New Type I), and a stationary onboard pump with Y-shaped filter (New Type II) — comparing their collection efficiency and suitability for large-scale open-ocean monitoring.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Sampling microfibres at the sea surface: The effects of mesh size, sample volume and water depth

Researchers examined how mesh size, sample volume, and water depth affect microfibre sampling at the sea surface, finding that fibre density increased substantially as mesh size decreased from 63 to 20 micrometres, highlighting significant underestimation in traditional 300-500 micrometer net surveys.

2019 Environmental Pollution 114 citations
Article Tier 2

Methods for sampling, processing, identification,and quantification of microplastics in the marine environment

This paper reviews and compares the various methods used to collect, process, identify, and quantify microplastics across different environmental samples. It highlights the lack of standardized protocols as a major obstacle to comparing results across studies and calls for methodological harmonization.

2020 Oceanography in Japan 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Analytical tools in advancing microplastics research for identification and quantification across environmental media: from sample to insight

Researchers reviewed the analytical tools most commonly used for identifying and quantifying microplastics, focusing on FTIR and Raman spectroscopy as the two primary methods. The review compared their strengths and limitations and provided guidance for choosing between them based on particle size, sample matrix, and research objectives.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Analytical tools in advancing microplastics research for identification and quantification across environmental media: from sample to insight

This review surveys analytical techniques used in microplastic research, covering sampling, extraction, and identification methods including FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, and pyrolysis-GC/MS, highlighting trade-offs between throughput, sensitivity, and particle size detection limits.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Probenaufbereitung für die Analyse auf Mikroplastik mit µFTIR-Spektroskopie: Untersuchung des enzymatischen Verdaus von Plankton mit FlowCam und µFTIR

This German-language study tested sample preparation methods for microplastic analysis using micro-FTIR spectroscopy, comparing different approaches for extracting particles from complex environmental matrices. Optimizing sample preparation is essential for generating reliable, reproducible data on microplastic types and concentrations in environmental samples.

2016 Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar-und Meeresforschung (Alfred-Wegener-Institut)
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric deposition of microplastics: a sampling and analytical method including the associated measurement uncertainties

Researchers developed and validated a tailored analytical chain—including sample collection, processing, and FPA-µ-FTIR analysis—for quantifying atmospheric microplastic deposition at particle sizes of 20–215 µm. The protocol enabled reliable measurement of MP fallout rates, supporting studies of the atmosphere as a major MP transport pathway.

2026 Atmospheric measurement techniques 1 citations
Article Tier 2

A novel method for purification, quantitative analysis and characterization of microplastic fibers using Micro-FTIR

Researchers developed an improved method for purifying, quantifying, and characterizing microplastic fibers using micro-FTIR spectroscopy, addressing the challenge that fibers are harder to process and identify than other microplastic shapes. The method improvements enable more accurate characterization of this common but technically challenging category of environmental microplastics.

2019 Chemosphere 191 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in seawater: a study of pretreatment, separation, and recovery.

Researchers developed and compared pretreatment, separation, and recovery methods for isolating microplastics from seawater samples, addressing the methodological diversity that limits comparability across marine monitoring studies. The study identified optimal combinations of techniques that improve microplastic recovery efficiency while minimizing contamination and sample loss.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Reevaluation of microplastics identification based on Neuston net survey data

This study re-examined microplastic identification methods, finding that optical counting without chemical treatment and spectroscopy (FTIR) leads to overestimates, particularly for foam particles. Accurate identification methods are essential for producing reliable data on microplastic contamination levels.

2021 Marine Pollution Bulletin 12 citations
Article Tier 2

A machine learning algorithm for high throughput identification of FTIR spectra: Application on microplastics collected in the Mediterranean Sea

Researchers developed a machine learning method to automatically identify the chemical composition of microplastics from FTIR spectroscopy data collected during the Tara Mediterranean expedition. The algorithm performed well for common polymers like polyethylene and was applied to classify over 4,000 unidentified microplastic spectra. The study demonstrates that automated identification tools can significantly speed up large-scale microplastic pollution surveys while maintaining acceptable accuracy.

2019 Chemosphere 172 citations