Fast and portable fluorescence lifetime analysis for early warning detection of micro- and nanoplastics in water

The presence of plastic fragments in aquatic environments, particularly at the micro- and nano-scale, has become a significant global concern. However, current detection methods are limited in their ability to reveal the presence of such particles in liquid samples. In this study, we propose the use of a fluorescence lifetime analysis system for the detection of micro- and nanoplastics in water. This approach relies on the inherent endogenous fluorescence of plastic materials and involves the collection of single photons emitted by plastic fragments upon exposure to a pulsed laser beam. Briefly, a pulsed laser beam (repetition frequency = 40 MHz) shines onto a sample solution, and the emitted light is filtered, collected, and used to trace the time distributions of the photons with high temporal resolution. Finally, the fluorescence lifetime was measured using fitting procedures and a phasor analysis. Phasor analysis is a fit-free method that allows the measurement of the fluorescence lifetime of a sample without any assumptions or prior knowledge of the sample decay pattern. The developed instrument was tested using fluorescence references and validated using unlabelled micro- and nano-scale particles. Our system successfully detected polystyrene particles in water, achieving a remarkable sensitivity with a detection limit of 0.01 mg/mL, without the need for sample pre-treatment or visual inspection. Although further studies are necessary to enhance the detection limit of the technique and distinguish between different plastic materials, this proof-of-concept study suggests the potential of the fluorescence lifetime-based approach as a rapid, robust, and cost-effective method for early warning detection and identification of plastic contaminants in aquatic environments.