Peer-Reviewed Publications Citing Lab261
Polymer microparticles, nanoparticles, microplastics, and nanoplastics from Lab261 are used in peer-reviewed studies across environmental science, analytical chemistry, neurotoxicology, and microfluidics.
Polymers used in published research
Polystyrene (PS) microspheres & nanoparticles
The most widely-published Lab261 polymer. Used in cellular uptake, blood-brain-barrier, and single-particle Raman-detection studies. Researchers have used Lab261 polystyrene nanospheres at sizes from 25 nm to 500 nm, and fluorescent PS nanoparticles with amine and carboxyl surface chemistry.
Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) microspheres
Higher density and more hydrophilic than PS — preferred for ICP-MS calibration, ultrasound-based detection, and reference-material sizing. Lab261 PMMA microspheres have been published at sizes from ~3 µm to 330 µm.
Polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP) & PET microplastics
The three most environmentally prevalent microplastic polymers. Used in photodegradation, weathering, and environmental fate studies that require additive-free, single-polymer particles to isolate polymer-specific effects from additive chemistry. Lab261 PE, PP, and PET microplastics are supplied as 100% pure polymer.
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) microplastics
Used as a reference polymer in single-particle ICP-MS and ICP-TOFMS sizing, where the chlorine signal enables multi-element detection. Lab261 PVC microspheres have been used in published calibration studies at sizes from 4 µm to 20 µm.
Microplastics & analytical methods
npj Emerging Contaminants · Vol. 2, Article 9
A team at Toronto Metropolitan University tested whether high-frequency ultrasound could replace slower spectroscopic methods for microplastic identification. They needed perfectly spherical, single-polymer reference particles spanning four distinct size ranges to train a 1-D convolutional neural network. Lab261 supplied PMMA microspheres from 20 µm through 300 µm, embedded in agarose phantoms. The model achieved 97.14% accuracy on material classification and 99.93% on size estimation.
“PMMA microspheres were obtained from Lab261 (Palo Alto, CA, USA). Microspheres were acquired in four nominal diameter ranges: 20–28 µm, 38–57 µm, 67–78.5 µm, and 300–330 µm.”
Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts · Vol. 28, pp. 1015–1029
Civil engineers at the University of British Columbia studied how specific UV-LED wavelengths and far-UVC light degrade the three most environmentally common microplastic polymers — PET, polypropylene, and polyethylene. Reproducible photo-oxidation results required additive-free, single-polymer microspheres in the 300–500 µm range. Lab261 supplied PET, PP, and PE microspheres, which the team exposed to seven discrete UV wavelengths.
“PET, PP, and PE … were sourced as microspheres from Lab 261 (Palo Alto, CA, USA) and synthesized as additive-free, pure polymers.”
Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry · Vol. 40, pp. 753–761
Analytical chemists at TU Wien (Vienna) developed a new in-house calibration method for sizing microplastics using laser-ablation single-particle ICP-MS. Validation required PMMA particles with a tightly defined size distribution. Lab261 PMMA microspheres at 2.96 ± 0.1 µm served as the validation set, and the team demonstrated <6.3% deviation from certified diameters without external standards.
“Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) (2.96 ± 0.1 µm) microspheres were obtained from Lab261 (Palo Alto, CA) as 1% (wt/v) aqueous suspensions.”
Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry · Vol. 40, pp. 276–285
ETH Zurich researchers worked on extending the upper size limit of microplastic detection by ICP-time-of-flight mass spectrometry. They needed certified-size microspheres of three polymer types — PS, PMMA, and PVC — at matched sizes from 3–20 µm. Lab261 supplied all three polymer types, allowing the team to push the detectable upper limit from 10 µm to 20 µm.
“Microparticles of size from 3–20 µm … were purchased from Lab261 (Palo Alto, CA, USA) in 5 mL suspensions … 20 µm PVC was also purchased from Lab261.”
Nanoplastics & nano-bio interactions
Scientific Reports · Vol. 15, Article 6502
Neuropharmacologists at the Mossakowski Medical Research Centre (Polish Academy of Sciences) investigated whether brain astrocytes absorb and store polystyrene nanoparticles — a possible route by which environmental nanoplastics affect the central nervous system. The study required green-fluorescent (460/500 nm), amine-functionalized polystyrene nanoparticles at 25 nm.
“Polystyrene nanoparticles … with excitation and emission wavelengths of 460/500 nm … were purchased from Lab261 (Palo Alto, CA, USA) in a 10 mg/mL PS-NPs stock solution.”
Polymers · Vol. 15, Issue 24, Article 4644
Researchers at Brazil’s Nuclear and Energy Research Institute (IPEN-CNEN, São Paulo) developed a multi-technique micro-Raman approach for detecting individual nanoparticles below 10 nm. The method needed a calibration ladder of monodisperse polystyrene nanospheres at five distinct sizes — 25, 50, 100, 200, and 500 nm. Lab261 supplied the full nanosphere series.
“PS nanospheres (Lab261 Ltd., Palo Alto, CA, USA) with nominal diameters of 500 nm, 200 nm, 100 nm, 50 nm, and 25 nm were used.”
Why researchers choose Lab261
- Tightly controlled size distributions from 25 nm nanoparticles through several hundred microns
- Environmentally-relevant polymers: PS, PMMA, PE, PP, PET, PVC, Nylon, PC, PU
- Surface chemistry options: plain, –COOH, –NH2, and fluorescent labelling (visible and NIR)
- Additive-free and surfactant-free formulations available
- Custom particle systems with tailored size, composition, and surface chemistry
Work with Lab261
Standard polymer microparticles, environmentally-relevant microplastics & nanoplastics, or fully custom particle systems for your research.
Contact usThis page is updated as new peer-reviewed publications using Lab261 particles come to our attention. If your work cites Lab261 and isn’t listed here, please contact us with the citation.