Droplet Precise Self-Splitting on Patterned Adhesive Surfaces for Simultaneous Multidetection

Precise separation and localization of microdroplets are fundamental for various fields, such as high-throughput screening, combinatorial chemistry, and the recognition of complex analytes. We have developed a droplet self-splitting strategy to divide an impacting droplet into predictable microdroplets and deposit them at preset spots for simultaneous multidetection. No matter exchange was observed between these microdroplets, so they could be manipulated independently. Droplet self-splitting was attributed to anisotropic liquid recoiling on the patterned adhesive surface, as influenced by the droplet Weber number and the width of the low-adhesive stripe. A quantitative criterion was also developed to judge the droplet self-splitting capability. The precise separation and distribution of microdroplets enabled simultaneous arrayed reactions and multiple analyte detection using one droplet of sample.     

Droplet Precise Self‐Splitting on Patterned Adhesive Surfaces for Simultaneous Multidetection

Precise separation and localization of microdroplets are fundamental for various fields, such as high‐throughput screening, combinatorial chemistry, and the recognition of complex analytes. We have developed a droplet self‐splitting strategy to divide an impacting droplet into predictable microdroplets and deposit them at preset spots for simultaneous multidetection. No matter exchange was observed between these microdroplets, so they could be manipulated independently. Droplet self‐splitting was attributed to anisotropic liquid recoiling on the patterned adhesive surface, as influenced by the droplet Weber number and the width of the low‐adhesive stripe. A quantitative criterion was also developed to judge the droplet self‐splitting capability. The precise separation and distribution of microdroplets enabled simultaneous arrayed reactions and multiple analyte detection using one droplet of sample.     

Reactions of Microsolvated Organic Compounds at Ambient Surfaces: Droplet Velocity,Charge State,and Solvent Effects

The exposure of charged microdroplets containing organic ions to solid-phase reagents at ambient surfaces results in heterogeneous ion/surface reactions. The electrosprayed droplets were driven pneumatically in ambient air and then electrically directed onto a surface coated with reagent. Using this reactive soft landing approach, acid-catalyzed Girard condensation was achieved at an ambient surface by directing droplets containing Girard T ions onto a dry keto-steroid. The charged droplet/surface reaction was much more efficient than the corresponding bulk solution-phase reaction performed on the same scale. The increase in product yield is ascribed to solvent evaporation, which causes moderate pH values in the starting droplet to reach extreme values and increases reagent concentrations. Comparisons are made with an experiment in which the droplets were pneumatically accelerated onto the ambient surface (reactive desorption electrospray ionization, DESI). The same reaction products were observed but differences in spatial distribution were seen associated with the “splash” of the high velocity DESI droplets. In a third type of experiment, the reactions of charged droplets with vapor phase reagents were examined by allowing electrosprayed droplets containing a reagent to intercept the headspace vapor of an analyte. Deposition onto a collector surface and mass analysis showed that samples in the vapor phase were captured by the electrospray droplets, and that instantaneous derivatization of the captured sample is possible in the open air. The systems examined under this condition included the derivatization of cortisone vapor with Girard T and that of 4-phenylpyridine N-oxide and 2-phenylacetophenone vapors with ethanolamine.     

Organic Reactions in Microdroplets: Reaction Acceleration Revealed by Mass Spectrometry

The striking finding that reaction acceleration occurs in confined‐volume solutions sets up an apparent conundrum: Microdroplets formed by spray ionization can be used to monitor the course of bulk‐phase reactions and also to accelerate reactions between the reagents in such a reaction. This Minireview introduces droplet and thin‐film acceleration phenomena and summarizes recent methods applied to study accelerated reactions in confined‐volume, high‐surface‐area solutions. Conditions that dictate either simple monitoring or acceleration are reconciled in the occurrence of discontinuous and complete desolvation as the endpoint of droplet evolution. The contrasting features of microdroplet and bulk‐solution reactions are described together with possible mechanisms that drive reaction acceleration in microdroplets. Current applications of droplet microreactors are noted as is reaction acceleration in confined volumes and possible future scale‐up.     

Development of Microdroplet Generation Method for Organic Solvents Used in Chemical Synthesis

Recently, chemical operations with microfluidic devices, especially droplet-based operations, have attracted considerable attention because they can provide an isolated small-volume reaction field. However, analysis of these operations has been limited mostly to aqueous-phase reactions in water droplets due to device material restrictions. In this study, we have successfully demonstrated droplet formation of five common organic solvents frequently used in chemical synthesis by using a simple silicon/glass-based microfluidic device. When an immiscible liquid with surfactant was used as the continuous phase, the organic solvent formed droplets similar to water-in-oil droplets in the device. In contrast to conventional microfluidic devices composed of resins, which are susceptible to swelling in organic solvents, the developed microfluidic device did not undergo swelling owing to the high chemical resistance of the constituent materials. Therefore, the device has potential applications for various chemical reactions involving organic solvents. Furthermore, this droplet generation device enabled control of droplet size by adjusting the liquid flow rate. The droplet generation method proposed in this work will contribute to the study of organic reactions in microdroplets and will be useful for evaluating scaling effects in various chemical reactions.     

Chemoselective N-Alkylation of Indoles in Aqueous Microdroplets

Many reactions show much faster kinetics in microdroplets than in the bulk phase. Most reported reactions in microdroplets mirror the products found in bulk reactions. However, the unique environment of microdroplets allows different chemistry to occur. In this work, we present the first chemoselective N-alkylation of indoles in aqueous microdroplets via a three-component Mannich-type reaction without using any catalyst. In sharp contrast, bulk reactions using the same reagents with a catalyst yield exclusively C-alkylation products. The N-alkylation yield is moderate in microdroplets, up to 53 %. We extended the scope of the microdroplet reaction and obtained a series of new functionalized indole aminals, which are likely to have biological activities. This work clearly indicates that microdroplet reactions can show reactivity quite different from that of bulk-phase reactions, which holds great potential for developing novel reactivities in microdroplets.     

Selective Synthesis in Microdroplets of 2-Phenyl-2,3-dihydrophthalazine-1,4-dione from Phenyl Hydrazine with Phthalic Anhydride or Phthalic Acid

Pyridazine derivatives are privileged structures because of their potential biological and optical properties. Traditional synthetic methods usually require acid or base as a catalyst under reflux conditions with reaction times ranging from hours to a few days or require microwave assistance to induce the reaction. Herein, this work presents the accelerated synthesis of a pyridazine derivative, 2-phenyl-2,3-dihydrophthalazine-1,4-dione (PDHP), in electrosprayed microdroplets containing an equimolar mixture of phenyl hydrazine and phthalic anhydride or phthalic acid. This reaction occurred on the submillisecond timescale with good yield (over 90 % with the choice of solvent) without using an external catalyst at room temperature. In sharp contrast to the bulk reaction of obtaining a mixture of two products, the reaction in confined microdroplets yields only the important six-membered heterocyclic product PDHP. Results indicated that surface reactions in microdroplets with low pH values cause selectivity, acceleration, and high yields.     

Chemoselective N‐Alkylation of Indoles in Aqueous Microdroplets

Many reactions show much faster kinetics in microdroplets than in the bulk phase. Most reported reactions in microdroplets mirror the products found in bulk reactions. However, the unique environment of microdroplets allows different chemistry to occur. In this work, we present the first chemoselective N‐alkylation of indoles in aqueous microdroplets via a three‐component Mannich‐type reaction without using any catalyst. In sharp contrast, bulk reactions using the same reagents with a catalyst yield exclusively C‐alkylation products. The N‐alkylation yield is moderate in microdroplets, up to 53 %. We extended the scope of the microdroplet reaction and obtained a series of new functionalized indole aminals, which are likely to have biological activities. This work clearly indicates that microdroplet reactions can show reactivity quite different from that of bulk‐phase reactions, which holds great potential for developing novel reactivities in microdroplets.     

Accelerated Hantzsch electrospray synthesis with temporal control of reaction intermediates

Complex chemical reactions can occur in electrosprayed droplets on the millisecond time scale. The Hantzsch synthesis of 1,4-dihydropyridines was studied in this way using on-line mass spectral analysis to optimize conditions and characterize the product mixture. Changing the distance between the nanospray source and the MS inlet allowed exploration of reaction progress as a function of droplet time-of-flight. Desolvation of the charged microdroplets is associated with transformation from starting material to intermediates and eventually to product as the distance is increased. Results of the on-line experiments require a termination step that discontinuously completes the desolvation process and allows the generated gaseous ions to be used to characterize the state of the system at a particular time. The intermediates seen correspond to those known to occur in the bulk solution-phase reaction. Off-line collection of the sprayed reaction mixture allowed the recovery of 250 mg h^–1 of desired reaction product from a single sprayer, permitting characterization by NMR and other standard methods. A thin film version of the accelerated reaction is described and it could be controlled through the temperature of the collection surface.     

Accelerated microdroplet synthesis of benzimidazoles by nucleophilic addition to protonated carboxylic acids

We report a metal-free novel route for the accelerated synthesis of benzimidazole and its derivatives in the ambient atmosphere. The synthetic procedure involves 1,2-aromatic diamines and alkyl or aryl carboxylic acids reacting in electrostatically charged microdroplets generated using a nano-electrospray (nESI) ion source. The reactions are accelerated by orders of magnitude in comparison to the bulk. No other acid, base or catalyst is used. Online analysis of the microdroplet accelerated reaction products is performed by mass spectrometry. We provide evidence for an acid catalyzed reaction mechanism based on identification of the intermediate arylamides. Their dehydration to give benzimidazoles occurs in a subsequent thermally enhanced step. It is suggested that the extraordinary acidity at the droplet surface allows the carboxylic acid to function as a C-centered electrophile. Comparisons of this methodology with data from thin film and bulk synthesis lead to the proposal of three key steps in the reaction: (i) formation of an unusual reagent (protonated carboxylic acid) because of the extraordinary conditions at the droplet interface, (ii) accelerated bimolecular reaction because of limited solvation at the interface and (iii) thermally assisted elimination of water. Eleven examples are shown as evidence of the scope of this chemistry. The accelerated synthesis has been scaled-up to establish the substituent-dependence and to isolate products for NMR characterization.

We report a metal-free novel route for the accelerated synthesis of benzimidazole and its derivatives in the ambient atmosphere.     

Accelerated Chemical Reactions and Organic Synthesis in Leidenfrost Droplets

Leidenfrost levitated droplets can be used to accelerate chemical reactions in processes that appear similar to reaction acceleration in charged microdroplets produced by electrospray ionization. Reaction acceleration in Leidenfrost droplets is demonstrated for a base‐catalyzed Claisen–Schmidt condensation, hydrazone formation from precharged and neutral ketones, and for the Katritzky pyrylium into pyridinium conversion under various reaction conditions. Comparisons with bulk reactions gave intermediate acceleration factors (2–50). By keeping the volume of the Leidenfrost droplets constant, it was shown that interfacial effects contribute to acceleration; this was confirmed by decreased reaction rates in the presence of a surfactant. The ability to multiplex Leidenfrost microreactors, to extract product into an immiscible solvent during reaction, and to use Leidenfrost droplets as reaction vessels to synthesize milligram quantities of product is also demonstrated.     

Dual Tunability for Uncatalyzed N-Alkylation of Primary Amines Enabled by Plasma-Microdroplet Fusion

The fusion of non-thermal plasma with charged microdroplets facilitates catalyst-free N-alkylation for a variety of primary amines, without halide salt biproduct generation. Significant reaction enhancement (up to >200×) is observed over microdroplet reactions generated from electrospray. This enhancement for the plasma-microdroplet system is attributed to the combined effects of energetic collisions and the presence of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The ROS (e.g., O₂⋅⁻) act as a proton sink to increase abundance of free neutral amines in the charged microdroplet environment. The effect of ROS on N-alkylation is confirmed through three unique experiments: (i) utilization of radical scavenging reagent, (ii) characterization of internal energy distribution, and (iii) controls performed without plasma, which lacked reaction acceleration. Establishing plasma discharge in the wake of charged microdroplets as a green synthetic methodology overcomes two major challenges within conventional gas-phase plasma chemistry, including the lack of selectivity and product scale-up. Both limitations are overcome here, where dual tunability is achieved by controlling reagent concentration and residence time in the microdroplet environment, affording single or double N-alkylated products. Products are readily collected yielding milligram quantities in eight hours. These results showcase a novel synthetic strategy that represents a straightforward and sustainable C−N bond-forming process.     

Efficient Generation of Microdroplets Using Tail Breakup Induced with Multi-Branch Channels

In recent years, research on the application of microdroplets in the fields of biotechnology and chemistry has made remarkable progress, but the technology for the stable generation of single-micrometer-scale microdroplets has not yet been established. In this paper, we developed an efficient and stable single-micrometer-scale droplet generation device based on the fragmentation of droplet tails, called “tail thread mode”, that appears under moderate flow conditions. This method can efficiently encapsulate microbeads that mimic cells and chemical products in passively generated single-micrometer-scale microdroplets. The device has a simple 2D structure; a T-junction is used for droplet generation; and in the downstream, multi-branch channels are designed for droplet deformation into the tail. Several 1–2 µm droplets were successfully produced by the tail’s fragmentation; this continuous splitting was induced by the branch channels. We examined a wide range of experimental conditions and found the optimal flow rate condition can be reduced to one-tenth compared to the conventional tip-streaming method. A mold was fabricated by simple soft lithography, and a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) device was fabricated using the mold. Based on the 15 patterns of experimental conditions and the results, the key factors for the generation of microdroplets in this device were examined. In the most efficient condition, 61.1% of the total droplets generated were smaller than 2 μm.     

Nonstationary evolution of the size,composition, and temperature of microdroplets of nonideal two- and three-component aqueous solutions

Results of numerical solution have been presented for a set of equations describing the nonstationary and nonisothermal growth or evaporation of microdroplets consisting of ethanol and water, sulfuric acid and water, and sulfuric and nitric acids and water. Time dependences of droplet size, temperature, and composition have been determined at low concentrations of a condensable vapor, as compared with the concentration of a carrier gas in an ambient vapor–gas mixture. The calculations have been performed using different initial conditions and approximations for the dependences of saturation vapor pressures, activity coefficients, and partial heats of condensation of the components, as well as average volumes per molecule on droplet composition and temperature. By the examples of ethanol–water and sulfuric acid–water droplets, it has been shown that nonmonotonic variations in the droplet radius are possible. Regimes of nonmonotonic variations in the temperature of a droplet that precede the onset of its stationary growth or evaporation have been revealed for all systems under consideration.     

Controlled Formation of Low-Volume Liquid Pillars between Plates with a Lattice of Wetting Patches by Use of a Second Immiscible Fluid

We describe a method for forming an array of microdroplets between two plates, at least one of which is patterned with a lattice of wetting patches, using a second immiscible fluid to control droplet formation. The method may be useful for performing multiple, small-volume biochemical reactions in parallel. We analyze the forces responsible for droplet formation, describe results of a computer simulation using Surface Evolver, and derive an analytic criterion for droplet formation in terms of the contact angles of the droplet:second fluid interface on the wetting patches and surrounding surface, the diameter of the wetting patches, the distance between wetting patches, and the distance between the plates. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.     

Selective Transportation of Microdroplets Assisted by a Superhydrophobic Surface with pH‐Responsive Adhesion

We report a new strategy to realize the selective transportation of microdroplets assisted by a superhydrophobic surface with pH‐responsive adhesion. On the surface, only basic microdroplets can be pinned and acidic or neutral microdroplets can easily roll off. Therefore, by using the surface as a “mechanical hand”, microdroplets can be transported selectively according to one’s requirements by simply controlling the pH of the solution. The special ability of the surface to achieve selective transportation is ascribed to the following two reasons: 1) superhydrophobicity, which can avoid the wetting problem, and 2) pH‐responsive adhesion, which results from the combined effect of chemical variation of the carboxylic acid group and microstructures on the surface. Furthermore, we also demonstrated a process of selective transportation of microdroplets for applications in droplet‐based microreactors through our surface. The results reported herein advance a new method to realize the selective transportation of microdroplets and we believe that this method could potentially be used in a wide range of applications, such as biomolecular detection and transportation in biochips.     

“On‐Droplet” Chemistry: The Cycloaddition of Diethyl Azodicarboxylate and Quadricyclane

Sharpless and co‐workers previously studied the [2σ+2σ+2π] cycloaddition of diethyl azodicarboxylate (DEAD) and quadricyclane and reported that the addition of water to the neat reagents caused an acceleration in the reaction rate, giving birth to what has been called “on‐water” chemistry. We have examined the same reaction in aqueous microdroplets (ca. 5 μm diameter) and find that the cycloaddition reaction is accelerated even further (by a factor of 10²) compared to that of the “on‐water” reaction reported previously. The trends of acceleration in solvents other than water demonstrated by Sharpless and colleagues were replicated in the corresponding microdroplet experiments. We also find that DEAD reacts with itself to form a variety of hydrazine carboxylates and intercept intermediates of this reaction in microdroplets to validate a mechanism proposed herein. We suggest that “on‐droplet” chemistry, similar to “on‐water” chemistry, may be a general process of synthetic interest.     

Effects of Charge and Structure of Hyaluronic Acid on the Luminescence Quenching in Aqueous Solution

The quenching of electronically excited Ru(bpy)₃²⁺ (bpy = Tris-2,2′-bipyridine) by methylviologen (MV) and ferricyanide (FC) in aqueous solutions of hyaluronic acid (HA) was studied. The structural and viscosity changes occuring with increasing HA concentration were found to influence the photophysical and photochemical properties of the sensitizer. Different kinetic models had to be used for the quenchers studied. The kinetics of the quenching of *Ru(bpy)₃²⁺ by MV can be described by the pseudophase model, which indicates that the rate for the exchange of the quencher between the microdroplets is higher than that for the excited state decay of the Ruthenium complex. In contrast, the quenching by the negatively charged quencher, FC, can be described by the Infelta-Tachiya equation, which indicates that the distribution of this quencher on the aqueous microdroplets is of the Poisson type and there is no exchange of quencher molecules during the lifetime of the sensitizer. The lifetimes of the excited Ruthenium complex, the unimolecular constants for its quenching by FC and the average concentration of the aqueous microdroplets increase with increasing HA concentration, reflecting the change in the solution structure during the transition from semidilute to concentrated regions. For MV no significant dependence of the quenching constant on the HA content of the solution was found. The reaction behavior of charged reactants in HA solution depends strongly on the sign of the charge.     

High-Throughput Diversification of Complex Bioactive Molecules by Accelerated Synthesis in Microdroplets

Late-stage diversification of drug molecules is an important strategy in drug discovery that can be facilitated by reaction screening using high-throughput experimentation. Here we present a rapid method for functionalizing bioactive molecules based on accelerated reactions in microdroplets. Reaction mixtures are nebulized at throughputs better than 1 reaction/second and the accelerated reactions occurring in the microdroplets are followed by desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (DESI-MS). Because the accelerated reactions occur on the millisecond timescale, they allow an overall screening throughput of 1 Hz working at the low nanogram scale. Using this approach, an opioid agonist (PZM21) and an antagonist (naloxone) were diversified using three reactions important in medicinal chemistry: sulfur fluoride exchange (SuFEx) click reactions, imine formation reactions, and ene-type click reactions. Some 269 functionalized analogs of naloxone and PZM21 were generated and characterized by tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) after screening over 500 reactions.     

Promotion of <Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid and peptide cocrystallization within levitated droplets with net charge

Many reactions occur as a result of charge imbalance within or between reactive species in reaction vessels that have zero net charge. Here, chemical processes taking place within reaction vessels having net excess charge were studied. For mass spectroscopists, a familiar example of vessels that defy electroneutrality are the charged droplets produced by an electrospray ion source. Evidence is presented that control of the magnitude of the net charge contained in a reaction vessel, in this case a levitated droplet, can be used to promote nucleation and crystal growth of a mixture of an organic acid, alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid (CHCA), with one or more peptides. This phenomenon was first observed during our ongoing development of wall-less sample preparation (WaSP), electrodynamic charged droplet processing methodology capable of creating micrometer-sized sample spots for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) from subnanoliter volumes of sample material. Peptide ion signal-to-noise (S/N) ratios obtained by MALDI-TOF-MS from sample spots created from droplets that had high relative magnitude of net charge were consistently greater than those detected from sample spots created from droplets that had lower net charge. To study this unexpected phenomenon further, WaSP methodology was developed to process different mass-to-charge (m/z) droplets levitated in an electrodynamic balance (EDB), facilitating their deposition onto different positions of a target to create arrays of droplet residues ordered from highest to lowest m/z. This capability allowed simultaneous levitation with subsequent separation of a population of droplets created from a single starting solution, but the droplets had varied magnitudes of net charge. After the droplets were ejected from the EDB and collected on a glass slide or MALDI plate, the solids contained in the deposited droplets were characterized using microscopy and MALDI-TOF-MS. Factors impacting the chemical processing in droplets having net excess charge levitated in an EDB are discussed with particular emphasis on their possible roles in the promotion of crystal nucleation and growth.