Analytical Techniques for Microplastics in Drinking Water
Abstract
Microplastic (MP) pollution is an emerging issue in recent years. Research has confirmed that the existence of MP is found surprisingly in drinking water. Research on the analytical technique for MPs in different drinking water sources is highlighted in this review. In general, pre-treatment for MP detection in drinking water is simpler since it contains lesser particles and organic matters. Currently, the detectable particle size is ranged from 50 nm to 5000 μm in drinking water. For basic physical characterisation, visual inspection is a simple and direct analytical method with lower cost, though it is subjective and cannot identify polymer types. For definitive chemical characterisation, spectroscopic techniques are standard. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is well-suited for the automated analysis of particles larger than 20 μm, while Raman spectroscopy excels at identifying the molecular structure of smaller particles, down to 1 μm, albeit with longer analysis times. For mass quantification, pyrolysis-gas chromatography mass spectrometry (Py-GCMS) offers a comprehensive analysis of MPs and can be considered a feasible method for various sample matrices; however, it is destructive and lacks information on size distribution. Moreover, the analysis can be complex due to the products from pyrolysis, whereas a total organic carbon (TOC) analyser offers a rapid and simple alternative for measuring MP-carbon mass, though it yields no morphological information.…
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