By Maria Schneider, Vallarie Burge, Lydia Bryant, Catherine Nguyen
Faculty mentor: Dr. Randall Reif
Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) is an analytical method that produces an absorbance spectrum which can be used to identify specific molecules. Previous literature showed that Nile Red (NR) is an effective indicator for detecting microplastics in water samples. As plastic pollution has exponentially increased, it is necessary to find methods to efficiently
identify microplastics in water. Our experiment intended to determine the presence of microplastics in water samples in addition to observing the effects of NR on the ability of FTIR to detect the microplastics. A nanopure reference was used and the water sample was collected from the Chesapeake Bay in Yorktown, Virginia along with Acadia Spring Water (bottled). Samples were vacuum filtrated onto filter paper; half of the samples were soaked in NR and half left unstained. After incubation, spectral data was collected using FTIR. The IR Spectrum for the
unstained filter paper showed peaks at the following wavenumbers (cm-1
): 3331.7, 2893.5, and a distinct fingerprint region. When the spectra for unstained samples were compared to the filter paper, there were no distinct peaks to differentiate them. Given the analysis of the IR spectra, there was no presence of microplastics detected in any of the water samples. Absorbance proved to be slightly higher in samples soaked in NR, however. The lack of presence could have
been due to purity of the water samples or diffusion of the plastics during the incubation period. Future changes in sample preparation to better results will be discussed.
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