Separating microplastics (MPs) (smaller particle size, < 1 mm) from complex environmental samples such as particulate organic matter (POM) is challenging, particularly for polyethylene and polypropylene, which are buoyant like POM. It is often done using a time-consuming procedure, often with hazardous waste generation. We developed a simple, low-cost procedure using a binary solvent mixture (ethanol–water) followed by water solvation to separate MPs from estuarine POM and surface water. The isolated MPs were quantified and characterized using μFT-IR and scanning electron microscopy, with particle sizes ranging from 30 to 2500 μm and percentage mass from 2.62–21.3% wt/wt in POM and 0.04–0.42% wt/vol for surface water, respectively. Different polymer types, colors, and shapes were observed. Method recovery assessed using spiking yielded 89–93.1% and the method was validated by visual sorting with dye staining. This method is low-cost, simple, and aligns with Green Chemistry approaches while efficiently separating plastics of various particle sizes, shapes, and compositions. Furthermore, this low-cost approach and the near-universal availability of ethanol make this method more accessible in research and education throughout regions of the world where plastic debris is a major challenge but resources to study the problem are limited.

中文翻译：

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从复杂环境基质中二元溶剂萃取微塑料

从颗粒有机物 (POM) 等复杂环境样品中分离微塑料 (MP)（较小粒径，< 1 毫米）具有挑战性，特别是对于像 POM 一样具有浮力的聚乙烯和聚丙烯。这通常是通过耗时的程序来完成的，并且通常会产生危险废物。我们开发了一种简单、低成本的程序，使用二元溶剂混合物（乙醇-水），然后进行水溶剂化，从河口 POM 和地表水中分离 MP。使用 μFT-IR 和扫描电子显微镜对分离的 MP 进行定量和表征，粒径范围为 30 至 2500  μPOM 中的 m 和质量百分比分别为 2.62–21.3% wt/wt，地表水的质量百分比为 0.04–0.42% wt/vol。观察到不同的聚合物类型、颜色和形状。使用加标评估的方法回收率为 89-93.1%，并通过染料染色的视觉分类来验证该方法。该方法成本低、简单，符合绿色化学方法，同时有效分离各种粒径、形状和成分的塑料。此外，这种低成本方法和乙醇几乎普遍存在，使得这种方法在世界各地的研究和教育中更容易使用，在这些地区，塑料碎片是一个主要挑战，但研究该问题的资源有限。