Fourier-transform infrared microscope to characterize microplastics isolated from environmental matrices

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Our research group is working on generating Canadian-specific data on the magnitude of pollution of freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems by microplastics, which have been far less studied relative to marine ecosystems, by measuring the microplastic content of water, sediment, soil, and aquatic and terrestrial biota. Our research program also characterizes and quantifies the microplastics present in biosolids, municipal compost, wastewater effluent across Canada, which each represent a major pathway of exposure of soil and freshwater ecosystems to microplastics. Our study is also generating data on the concentration of microplastics that cause adverse effects in important freshwater and soil biota at different trophic positions in Canada's freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems, which is essential to understanding the impact of microplastics. These data are critical for characterizing the risk that microplastics pose to Canada's freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems. Quantifying the risk of different sizes and types of microplastics is the first step in developing a data-driven plan to manage the impact to Canada's freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems through policy and decision making.    An important element of our research program is being able to determine that the microparticles that we are isolating from environmental matrices are actually composed of plastic. There are several reasons why it is critical to be able to confirm the composition of the microparticles that we are isolating from water, sediment, soil, wastewater, biosolids, and tissue of biota. 1) To accurately assess the risk of microplastics to Canada's ecosystems, we need to be able to accurately quantify the exposure of these ecosystems to microplastics. Employing exclusively visual identification can result in overestimation of microplastics exposure, which would result in an overestimation of risk to Canada's ecosystems, 2) To begin to identify the major sources of microplastics to Canada's ecosystems, we need to be able to determine the type of plastic that makes up the microplastics that we isolate from water, sediment, soil, wastewater, biosolids, and tissue of aquatic and terrestrial biota. To confirm that the microparticles that we have isolated from these environmental matrices are composed of plastic, we need to be able to characterize the material of the microparticles. The most accurate method to identify the composition of microparticles is Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The spectra generated using FT-IR can be matched to various spectral databases for materials and fibres. The use of FT-IR to characterize microplastics has become essential for the production of data that can be confidently used in risk assessment of microplastics in the environment. For these reasons, our research group is requesting funding to purchase a FT-IR microscope. Access to an FT-IR microscope will considerably elevate the impact of our research program.