Portable automatic microscopy systems for rapid detection of multiple types of microplastics

A portable automatic microscope system for detecting and classifying plastics and fibers in an environmental and/or industrial water sample, comprising:

• a sample introduction module configured to receive an environmental and/or industrial water sample;
• a filtration module comprising a membrane holder and at least one membrane filter configured to retain plastics and fibers from the water sample;
• a dye application module configured to deliver a dye matrix onto the retained plastics and fibers, wherein the dye matrix comprises at least one lipophilic fluorescent dye and at least one hydrophilic colorimetric dye;
• a microscope imaging module, comprising:
• an optical system comprising an objective lens and a linear actuator or stepper motor for automatic focus adjustment;
• a controllable illumination source configured to provide visible light and ultraviolet light;
• and
• a digital camera configured to capture images of the retained plastics and fibers;
• a control module configured to control operation of the sample introduction module, filtration module, dye application module, and microscope imaging module;
• and
• a computing module comprising a processor and memory, the computing module being configured to:
• receive the captured images from the digital camera;
• identify regions of interest corresponding to plastics and fibers;
• extract color, size, and morphology features from the regions of interest;
• and
• classify the plastics and fibers based on the extracted features using an image analysis method;
• wherein the system is configured to perform on-site and real-time detection and classification of plastics and fibers in the environmental and/or industrial water sample.