Could photoluminescence spectroscopy be an alternative technique for the detection of microplastics? First experiments using a 405 nm laser for excitation

We performed first experiments to evaluate the potential of photoluminescence spectroscopy to detect microplastics using a 405 nm laser diode for sample excitation. A set of nine bulk plastic samples and nine samples of natural materials typically found in the marine environment were examined and compared. The plastic and non-plastic materials could be differentiated based on the shape of the acquired photoluminescence spectra. Our results show that photoluminescence spectroscopy holds the potential for reliable characterization of environmental samples regarding the microplastic content.