KR102566703B1 - A system for measuring microplastics based on dynamic image analysis - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is a system for measuring microplastics based on dynamic image analysis, comprising: a sample having fluidity; a flow cell in the form of a panel on one side of which the sample is continuously injected; a flow control unit controlling the flow rate of the sample injected into the flow cell; a light source unit disposed to face the other side surface of the flow cell connected to the one side surface of the flow cell and radiating light to the other side surface of the flow cell with an optical axis perpendicular to the injection direction of the sample; A sample irradiated with the light of the light source unit is disposed to face the light source unit on the same optical axis line as the light source unit and is spaced apart from each other while passing through the flow cell at a flow rate controlled by the flow control unit. , an image sensor that captures images at a predetermined frequency or higher; and an optical system spaced apart between the flow cell and the image sensor on the same optical axis as the light source and the image sensor, and enlarging an image of a sample to be captured by the image sensor,
The other side of the flow cell is characterized in that the width in a direction perpendicular to the injection direction of the sample is made relatively larger than the width of one side of the flow cell, so that microplastics can be more accurately and efficiently It has a measurable effect.

Description

Microplastics measurement system based on dynamic image analysis {A SYSTEM FOR MEASURING MICROPLASTICS BASED ON DYNAMIC IMAGE ANALYSIS}

The present invention obtains a dynamic image using high-speed flash lighting and a high-speed camera for a fluidic sample continuously injected into a panel-type flow cell in which the area for irradiation and imaging is relatively larger than the area for injection, and the obtained dynamic Microplastics measurement system based on dynamic image analysis that can measure microplastics more accurately and efficiently through a configuration that monitors microplastics in samples by analyzing images, and at the same time can easily achieve measurement of synthetic fiber microplastics It is about.

In general, microplastics are classified as primary microplastics for leakages that occur directly from products such as face wash, toothpaste, and functional cosmetics, and secondary microplastics for leakages caused by discarding or using plastic products.

To distinguish the size, shape and type of these microplastics, microscopes, infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy) and Raman spectroscopy are mainly used, and recently, micro-Raman spectroscopy It is known that microplastics as small as 1 μm can be identified.

However, these manual analysis methods are labor-intensive, costly, time-consuming, and have disadvantages in that cognitive bias or errors may occur because plastic-like particles are manually analyzed after being checked under a microscope.

On the other hand, analysis of microplastics of around 1 μm is possible through analysis such as Py-GC/MS and MALDI-TOF-MS, which are thermal decomposition methods, but information on the composition of microplastics is difficult to confirm.

In addition, it takes a lot of time due to the filtering process of the environmental sample (more than 7 hours based on a 25mm filter), and since the analysis is possible only on the filter with the sample fixed, real-time automatic analysis and monitoring are impossible.

In particular, the major sources of microplastics are classified in the order of laundry wastewater synthetic fibers, tire abrasion, city dust, road paint, ship paint, and personal household items. There is a demand for a system for real-time analysis and measurement of synthetic fiber microplastics.

Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-2296894 (title of invention: real-time microplastic analysis device)

Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and high-speed flash illumination and Using a high-speed camera to acquire dynamic images and analyzing the obtained dynamic images to monitor microplastics in the sample, it is possible to measure microplastics more accurately and efficiently, and at the same time, it is easy to measure synthetic fiber microplastics. The purpose of this study is to provide a microplastic measurement system based on dynamic image analysis that can achieve the desired results.

However, the technical problem to be achieved in the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned technical problems, and other technical problems not mentioned will become clear to those skilled in the art from the description below. You will be able to understand.

A system for measuring microplastics based on dynamic image analysis according to an embodiment of the present invention, which is a technical means for achieving the above object, is a system for measuring microplastics based on dynamic image analysis, comprising: a sample having fluidity; a flow cell in the form of a panel on one side of which the sample is continuously injected; a flow control unit controlling the flow rate of the sample injected into the flow cell; a light source unit disposed to face the other side surface of the flow cell connected to the one side surface of the flow cell and radiating light to the other side surface of the flow cell with an optical axis perpendicular to the injection direction of the sample; A sample irradiated with the light of the light source unit is disposed to face the light source unit on the same optical axis line as the light source unit and is spaced apart from each other while passing through the flow cell at a flow rate controlled by the flow control unit. , an image sensor that captures images at a predetermined frequency or higher; and an optical system disposed spaced apart between the flow cell and the image sensor on the same optical axis as the light source unit and the image sensor and magnifying an image of a sample to be captured by the image sensor, The width of the side surface in a direction perpendicular to the injection direction of the sample may be relatively larger than that of one side surface of the flow cell.

In addition, by analyzing the image taken from the image sensor through a pre-stored image processing program, qualitative analysis data for at least one of the length, size, area, shape (shape), and length-width ratio of the microplastics contained in the sample and , Extracting data for quantitative analysis on the number of microplastics, obtaining selection information of the microplastics based on the data for qualitative analysis, and obtaining concentration information of the microplastics based on the data for quantitative analysis control unit; And it may further include a display unit for displaying on an arbitrary screen as a preset notification signal according to the selection information and the concentration information obtained from the controller.

In addition, the selection information may be data indicating a selection result of which type of microplastics corresponds, and the concentration information is a detection result of how much microplastics are contained per injection amount of the sample. It may be data representing

In addition, the image sensor may be a high-speed camera configured to secure about 10,000 to 11,000 captured images per minute, and the image processing program of the controller may capture images obtained from the image sensor at about 10 to 11,000 frames per second. It can be imaged and analyzed in 20 frames, and the light source unit may be a high-speed flash light flickering and emitting light at a frequency corresponding to the frequency of the image sensor.

In addition, the control unit may acquire the selection information by mutually matching the data for qualitative analysis with preset selection criteria data, wherein the selection criteria data include synthetic fibers and microplastics having a length of about 1 μm to 1,000 μm. Criteria data for selection of may be included.

In addition, the flow control unit may be a metering pump that uniformly injects the sample in a preset amount by using pressure.

The dynamic image analysis-based microplastic measurement system according to the present invention uses high-speed flash lighting and a high-speed camera for fluidic samples continuously injected into a panel-type flow cell in which the area for irradiation and imaging is relatively larger than the area for injection. Through the configuration of acquiring dynamic images and monitoring the microplastics in the sample by analyzing the acquired dynamic images, the microplastics can be measured more accurately and efficiently, and at the same time, the measurement of synthetic fiber microplastics is easily achieved. can do.

In addition, according to the present invention, the configuration of a control unit for extracting data for qualitative analysis and data for quantitative analysis by image analysis using a pre-stored image processing program, and acquiring selection information and concentration information according to the extracted data, and a control unit There is an effect of easily visually recognizing the content of each type while automatically sorting the microplastics according to the type through the configuration of the display unit that displays the selection information and concentration information obtained from the screen.

In addition, according to the present invention, there is an advantage in that measurement reliability can be further improved in terms of obtaining concentration information through the configuration of the flow control unit that uniformly injects a sample by a preset amount into the flow cell using pressure.

However, the effects obtainable in the present invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below. You will be able to.

1 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of a microplastic measurement system based on dynamic image analysis according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a view showing a photographing area of a flow cell and an angle of view by an image sensor and an optical system in the microplastic measurement system according to FIG. 1;

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail so that those skilled in the art can easily carry out the present invention. However, since the description of the present invention is only an embodiment for structural or functional description, the scope of the present invention should not be construed as being limited by the embodiments described in the text. That is, since the embodiment can be changed in various ways and can have various forms, it should be understood that the scope of the present invention includes equivalents capable of realizing the technical idea. In addition, since the object or effect presented in the present invention does not mean that a specific embodiment should include all of them or only such effects, the scope of the present invention should not be construed as being limited thereto.

The meaning of terms described in the present invention should be understood as follows.

Terms such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish one component from another, and the scope of rights should not be limited by these terms. For example, a first element may be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element may be termed a first element. It should be understood that when an element is referred to as “connected” to another element, it may be directly connected to the other element, but other elements may exist in the middle. On the other hand, when an element is referred to as being “directly connected” to another element, it should be understood that no intervening elements exist. Meanwhile, other expressions describing the relationship between components, such as “between” and “immediately between” or “adjacent to” and “directly adjacent to” should be interpreted similarly.

Singular expressions should be understood to include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise, and terms such as “comprise” or “having” refer to a described feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or It should be understood that it is intended to indicate that a combination exists, and does not preclude the possibility of the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

All terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs, unless defined otherwise. Terms defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as consistent with meanings in the context of related art, and cannot be interpreted as having ideal or excessively formal meanings unless explicitly defined in the present invention.

1 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of a microplastic measurement system based on dynamic image analysis according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a photographic area of a flow cell, an image sensor, and an optical system in the microplastic measurement system according to FIG. 1 It is a drawing showing the angle of view by .

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the dynamic image analysis-based microplastic measurement system 100 according to the present invention is a system for measuring microplastics based on dynamic image analysis, in which a sample (not shown), a flow It may be configured to include a cell 110, a flow control unit 120, a light source unit 130, an image sensor 140, an optical system 150, a control unit 160, and a display unit 170.

The sample is a sample material composed of liquid or gas having fluidity and containing microplastics (P), and according to the present invention, preferably, it may be laundry wastewater.

The sample may be stored in a separate storage unit (not shown) and then injected and supplied to the flow cell 110 through the flow control unit 120 to be described later, but is not accommodated in a certain space It may be directly introduced into the flow control unit 120.

The flow cell 110 is a test tube made of a transparent material such as glass or crystal to measure the components of a fluid using light. According to the present invention, it is preferable to have a panel shape with six sides, The sample may be continuously injected into the side surface 111 .

The flow control unit 120 is configured to control the flow rate of the sample injected into the flow cell 110, and preferably, the sample is uniformly injected into the flow cell 110 in a preset amount using pressure. It performs the function to be, which can be handled by a metering pump.

The light source unit 130 is configured to irradiate light to the flow cell 110, and is spaced apart to face one side surface 111 of the flow cell 110 and the other side surface 112 that is in contact with the flow cell 110. It performs a function of irradiating light to the other side surface 112 of the flow cell 110 with an optical axis perpendicular to the injection direction of the sample.

It is preferable that the light source unit 130 is a high-speed flash lighting that flickers and emits light at a frequency corresponding to the frequency of the image sensor 140 to be described later. Various known lighting devices may be applied within the technical scope of the present invention.

The image sensor 140 is configured to acquire an instantaneous image of a sample passing through the flow cell 110, and the flow cell 110 is spaced apart on the same optical axis line as the light source unit 130 described above. It may be spaced apart to face the light source unit 130, and the sample irradiated with the light of the light source unit 130 while passing through the flow cell 110 at a flow rate adjusted by the flow control unit 120, It performs the function of recording over the frequency.

The image sensor 140 is characterized in that it is a high-speed camera configured to secure about 10,000 to 11,000 captured images per minute, and more preferably, a rotational prism type high-speed camera can be applied.

Here, the rotating prism type high-speed camera continuously rotates the film to put a parallel two-sided polyprism prism between the lens and the film and rotate it, matching the moving speed of the image passing through the prism with the speed of the film, about It can shoot up to 10,000 scenes/second.

However, according to the present invention, the image sensor 140 is not limited to the above configuration, and a high-speed motor may be added to a time-lapse camera, a CMOS camera or a CCD camera, a speed dome camera, a pinhole camera, a pan-tilt-zoom camera, etc. A configuration for realizing a high-speed camera function may be applied.

In addition, the light source unit 130 and the image sensor 140 may implement a high-speed camera function in an organic configuration.

For example, in a rotating drum-type ultra-high-speed camera, when the film is fixed to the drum and rotated, the film is reinforced and the rotational speed is increased. And when using instant flash together, it acquires about 100,000 to 500,000 scenes/sec.

In addition, in relation to the above-described light source unit 130 and image sensor 140, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the other side surface 112 of the flow cell 110 has a direction perpendicular to the injection direction of the sample It is preferable that the width of the flow cell 110 is made relatively larger than the width of one side surface 111 of the flow cell 110.

That is, the flow cell 110 may be in the form of a panel in which the area for irradiation and imaging of the sample is relatively larger than the area for injection, and the structure of the flow cell 110 is such that the sample is thinly and evenly distributed during passage. As a result, since the noise phenomenon in which the microplastics P or foreign substances are overlapped and photographed can be minimized, more accurate measurement of the microplastics P can be made possible.

The optical system 150 is a component that magnifies the image of the sample to be photographed by the image sensor 140, and according to the present invention, the flow cell 110 is on the same optical axis line as the light source unit 130 and the image sensor 140 It may be configured to be spaced apart from and disposed between the image sensor 140 .

The optical system 150 may be applied to a microscope module including an objective lens, and since this is a commonly known technology, a detailed description thereof will be omitted, and within the technical scope of the present invention, those skilled in the art will be able to Of course, various optical devices can be handled by

The control unit 160 is a configuration for automatically sorting the microplastics P contained in the sample according to the type, and analyzes the image taken from the image sensor 140 through a pre-stored image processing program to contain the microplastics P contained in the sample. It is configured to extract data for qualitative analysis of at least one of the length, size, area, shape (shape), and width ratio of the microplastics P, and data for quantitative analysis of the number of the microplastics P. can

In addition, the control unit 160 may be configured to acquire the concentration information of the microplastics P based on the quantitative analysis data while obtaining selection information of the microplastics P based on the data for qualitative analysis. there is.

Here, it is preferable that the selection information is data indicating a selection result for which type of microplastic (P) corresponds, and the concentration information is the amount of microplastic (P) contained per injection amount of the sample. It is preferable that the data represent the detection result for

In addition, the image processing program of the control unit 160 according to the present invention may be configured to image and analyze the captured image obtained from the image sensor 140 at about 10 to 20 frames per second.

In addition, the image processing program analyzes the pixels to recognize the color, shade, position, size, etc. of the material of the pixels defined as vectors, or obtains edges, contours, etc. Recognition may be performed, or recognition may be performed by extracting invariant feature points including corner points existing in the image.

Such an image processing program is a generally known technology, and various modifications and designs are possible by those skilled in the art.

Furthermore, the control unit 160 may obtain the selection information by matching the above-described data for qualitative analysis with preset selection criteria data, and the selection criteria data includes synthetic fibers having a length of about 1 μm to 1,000 μm. Reference data for selection of microplastics may be included.

Such selection criterion data refers to data input and set in advance by a person skilled in the art in order to select microplastics (P) by type according to a predetermined standard in advance in response to the data for qualitative analysis expected to be extracted.

The display unit 170 is configured to easily visually recognize the content of each type of microplastic (P), and displays a notification signal preset according to the selection information and concentration information obtained from the control unit 160 on any screen. Performs the function of displaying on

The display unit 170 may include a liquid crystal display (LCD), a thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT LCD), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED), a flexible display ( It may be configured to include at least one of a flexible display) and a 3D display.

Detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiments of the present invention disclosed as described above are provided to enable those skilled in the art to implement and practice the present invention. Although the above has been described with reference to preferred embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention can be variously modified and changed without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, those skilled in the art can use each configuration described in the above-described embodiments in a manner of combining with each other. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the present invention. Accordingly, the above detailed description should not be construed as limiting in all respects and should be considered as illustrative. The scope of the present invention should be determined by reasonable interpretation of the appended claims, and all changes within the equivalent scope of the present invention are included in the scope of the present invention. The invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein. In addition, claims that do not have an explicit citation relationship in the claims may be combined to form an embodiment or may be included as new claims by amendment after filing.

100: microplastic measuring system 110: flow cell
111: one side (injection side) 112: the other side (irradiation side/photography side)
120: flow control unit 130: light source unit
140: image sensor 150: optical system
160: control unit 170: display unit
P: Microplastic

Claims (6)

In the system for measuring microplastics based on dynamic image analysis,
Samples with fluidity;
a flow cell in the form of a panel on one side of which the sample is continuously injected;
a flow control unit controlling the flow rate of the sample injected into the flow cell;
a light source unit disposed to face the other side surface of the flow cell connected to the one side surface of the flow cell and radiating light to the other side surface of the flow cell with an optical axis perpendicular to the injection direction of the sample;
A sample irradiated with the light of the light source unit is disposed to face the light source unit on the same optical axis line as the light source unit and is spaced apart from each other while passing through the flow cell at a flow rate controlled by the flow control unit. , an image sensor that captures images at a predetermined frequency or higher; and
An optical system spaced apart between the flow cell and the image sensor on the same optical axis as the light source and the image sensor, and enlarging an image of a sample to be captured by the image sensor,
The other side of the flow cell,
The width in the direction perpendicular to the injection direction of the sample,
Characterized in that it is made relatively larger than the width of one side of the flow cell,
Data for qualitative analysis of at least one of the length, size, area, shape (shape), and length-width ratio of the microplastics contained in the sample by analyzing the image taken from the image sensor through a pre-stored image processing program; a controller that extracts data for quantitative analysis on the number of microplastics, obtains selection information of the microplastics based on the data for qualitative analysis, and obtains concentration information of the microplastics based on the data for quantitative analysis; and
Characterized in that it further comprises a display unit for displaying on an arbitrary screen as a preset notification signal according to the selection information and the concentration information obtained from the control unit,
The selection information,
It is characterized in that the data indicating the selection result for which type the microplastic corresponds to,
The concentration information,
Characterized in that the data representing the detection result of how much the microplastics are contained per injection amount of the sample,
The image sensor,
Characterized in that it is a high-speed camera configured to secure 10,000 to 11,000 captured images per minute,
The image processing program of the control unit,
Characterized in that the captured image obtained from the image sensor is imaged and analyzed at 10 to 20 frames per second,
The light source unit,
Characterized in that it is a high-speed flash lighting that flickers and emits light at a frequency corresponding to the frequency of the image sensor,
The high-speed camera,
A microplastic measurement system based on dynamic image analysis, characterized in that a rotating prism-type high-speed camera or a rotating drum-type ultra-high-speed camera.
delete delete delete According to claim 1,
The control unit,
Characterized in that the selection information is obtained by mutually matching the data for qualitative analysis with preset selection criterion data,
In the selection criteria data,
A microplastic measurement system based on dynamic image analysis, characterized in that it includes reference data for selecting synthetic fiber microplastics having a length of 1 μm to 1,000 μm.
According to claim 1,
The flow control unit,
A microplastic measurement system based on dynamic image analysis, characterized in that the metering pump uses pressure to uniformly inject the sample in a preset amount.

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