Dr. Elizabeth Minor, Professor, Swenson College of Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota, Duluth
Microplastic particles have been identified as an emerging contaminant in natural waters, with as yet unknown effects upon the health of aquatic biota. Although microplastics have been found in lakes, rivers, streams, oceans, and snow, these particles are incredibly hard to quantify and characterize. Their wide size range and variable chemical composition lead to different densities and different responses to solvents and oxidants. Microplastic particles often co-occur with other natural and man-made particles that appear very similar to microplastics when viewed under a microscope. This talk will describe current sampling approaches, and the challenges and successes of current analytical techniques, including microscopy, FTIR, SEM, and pyGCMS.