A research visit to Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research (AWI, Heligoland) was organized in June 2024 and was focused on detecting microplastics in the environment.
This visit was attended by researchers from Educons University, Asst. Prof. dr Vesna Vasić, Asst. Prof. dr Zorana Srećkov, and Asst. Galina Čurčić. The two-week training was led by Dr Sebastian Primpke and his PhD student Fangzhu Wu to better understand and combat the ubiquitous problem of plastic pollution. During the training, researchers had the opportunity to explore innovative techniques, dive into the environmental impact, and collaborate more.
The first part of the visit was dedicated to working in the laboratory on thorough instrumental analysis courses including ATR, Raman and FTIR spectroscopy methods.
Fourier Transformation Infrared Spectroscopy, also known as FTIR Analysis or FTIR Spectroscopy, is an analytical technique used to identify organic, polymeric, and, in some cases, inorganic materials. The FTIR analysis method uses infrared light to scan test samples and observe chemical properties.
FTIR spectroscopy is a proven method for the identification of all types of polymers. It allows a reliable differentiation between substances of natural and synthetic origin and allows polymer type determination. To use this technique a thorough and time-consuming sample preparation is needed, but with its fully automatic scanning mode, it is very quick to setup, calibrate and let it scan the entire disc in a handful of hours, depending on the desired scanning parameters. Once all of the spectrum data has been collected a specially developed software called siMPle is used for it’s analyses and interpretation.
Key benefits of this software include a vast database of good quality spectrums which allow for high confidence in spectrum assignation and identification of polymers. Additionally the array of tools provided help with visualisation and data processing and filtering in a convenient manner.
Education from colleagues with extensive experience in this field is of great importance for researchers from Educons University because an FTIR spectroscope will soon be a part of their own microplastic analysis laboratory.
The Educons University Researchers used this visit also as an opportunity to learn more about all the details of step-by-step microplastic extraction from sediment samples. This experience provided them with an opportunity to address the implementation of these approaches in their laboratories, as well as approaches for improving a higher quality of their analyses and results.
