Harnessing fluorescence for advanced characterization of textile microfibre emissions
Elisabeth Allen, Claudia E. Henninger, Jane Wood, Celina Jones, Andrew G. Mayes, Arthur Garforth, Eve Micklewright
TL;DR
This paper introduces a new method using fluorescent dye to better detect and analyze microfibre shedding from synthetic textiles, helping reduce environmental pollution.
Contribution
The novel use of disperse fluorescent dye improves microfibre detection sensitivity by 280% and enables semi-automated analysis.
Findings
Fluorescent dye enhances detection of small and irregular microfibre fragments significantly.
The method reduces variability and contamination issues in textile testing laboratories.
The approach supports rapid analysis for improving eco-design and sustainable textile production.
Abstract
The rise in use of synthetic textiles, driven by low production costs and the fast fashion model, has significantly increased microplastic pollution in our environments causing both physical and chemical damage. To combat this, upstream solutions within the design and production stages of textiles is essential. However, advancements in eco-design parameters leading to the monitoring of reduced microfibre shedding are hindered by labour-intensive methods, high variability due to counting biases, and complications caused by high contamination encountered in textile testing laboratories. This research overcomes these issues by application of disperse fluorescent dye to polyester fabric before laundering, enabling detailed post-laundering microscopy analysis supported by semi-automated counting methods. The fluorescent dye penetrates the fibre matrix, enhancing the detection sensitivity of…
Genes, proteins, chemicals, diseases, species, mutations and cell lines named across the full text — each resolved to its canonical identifier and authoritative record.
Click any figure to enlarge with its caption.
Figure 10
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
Figure 5
Figure 6
Figure 7
Figure 8
Figure 9Peer Reviews
No public reviews on file for this paper yet. If you reviewed it on a platform where reviews are public (OpenReview, ICLR, NeurIPS, ICML), you can paste yours below so the community can read it here.
Videos
No videos yet. Explain this paper in a talk, walkthrough, or lecture? Add one.
Taxonomy
TopicsMicroplastics and Plastic Pollution · Dyeing and Modifying Textile Fibers · Textile materials and evaluations