EXPRESS: Applications of Two-Dimensional Correlation Spectroscopy (2D-COS) in Microplastic Research: A Review

Microplastics (MPs), as an emerging pollutant, have become a potential threat to the global ecological environment and human health due to their small particle size, wide distribution, easy interaction with other pollutants in the environment, and transmission along the food chain. As a powerful analytical technique, two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) can provide information on intermolecular interactions and dynamic changes, thus exhibiting unique advantages in MPs research. This review focuses on 2D-COS applications in MPs studies, including chemical structure and functional group characterization, aging or degradation mechanism elucidation, MPs-pollutants interaction analysis, and novel applications in biogeochemical processes (e.g., plant-MPs interactions, biofilm-modulated transformation). Finally, we discuss the current limitations of 2D-COS and prospect its future application trends in MPs research.