{"id":645,"date":"2021-12-21T12:34:10","date_gmt":"2021-12-21T16:34:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpstaging.whoi.edu\/site\/microplastics\/?page_id=645"},"modified":"2022-01-05T09:31:17","modified_gmt":"2022-01-05T13:31:17","slug":"introductory-course-on-microplastics","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/website.whoi.edu\/microplastics\/events-presentations\/introductory-course-on-microplastics\/","title":{"rendered":"Introductory Course on Microplastics"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t

Introductory Course on Microplastics<\/h1>\n

Wednesday, May 2, 2018, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
\nCarriage House and Marine Research Facility<\/h3>\n

Short course on micro-plastics for Graduate students, PhDs and Post docs. Interested Scientists welcome.<\/p>\n

Organizers: Marte Haave (Uni Research, Bergen Norway), Scott Gallager, Mark Hahn (WHOI), Tanja K\u00f6gel and Bj\u00f8rn-Einar Gr\u00f8svik (Institute of Marine Research, IMR, Bergen, Norway)<\/p>\n

Syllabus<\/h3>\n

Plastic waste is a major global issue. Many plankton and benthic organisms ingest microplastics. But how much is there, and how might it harm the environment? This short course will provide a theoretical and practical introduction to the scientific questions concerning the global increase in environmental plastic, and investigate the role of particle size in microplastic uptake by organisms. The lectures will introduce the global challenges related to plastic pollution as we understand them today, and discuss future research needs and knowledge gaps. Topics covered: Plastic polymer chemistry, environmental sampling and analytical methods, effects of microplastics on marine organisms, needs for risk assessment for environmental and human health. There will be time to communicate with researchers working in each field. The course will also encompass a practical session, with a demonstration of analytical methods in the laboratory as well as critical reading and discussion of published literature.<\/p>\n

Introduction to microplastics<\/h3>\n\n
    \n
  1. Global occurrence, sources, distribution and fate of plastic in the environment. (Jessica Donohue, Sea Education Association (SEA, USA)<\/li>\n
  2. Environmental distribution, sampling and isolation of microplastics in biota and sediment (Marte Haave, Uni Research, Norway)<\/li>\n
  3. The importance of the smaller size-classes – implications for food safety and risk assessment. (Tanja K\u00f6gel)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n
      \n
    1. Methods for identification of plastic polymers – theory and practice<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Raman spectroscopy, Scott Gallager (WHOI, USA), Fourier transform infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) & Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), Anna Michel (WHOI, USA)<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

      Critical reading: read and discuss curriculum papers<\/p>\n

      Read and discuss a selection of recent microplastics papers. Tanja K\u00f6gel and Bj\u00f8rn Einar Gr\u00f8svik (Institute of Marine Research, Norway).<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

      Hands on operation of a 532 nm Raman Spectrometer, hand-held 785 nm spectrometer, and a 532 nm flow-through system for large volumes of water. Also, use of a hand-held IR Reflectance spectrometer.<\/p>\n\n

      Knowledge gaps and research needs.<\/p>\n

      Student driven, researcher-guided discussion.<\/p>\n\t

      Additional Information<\/h3>\n