Determination of brominated phenols in water samples by on-line coupled isotachophoresis with capillary zone electrophoresis

A method for determination of nine brominated phenols as environmental risk compounds was developed by on-line coupled capillary isotachophoresis and capillary zone electrophoresis (ITP–CZE). For ITP step, 1 × 10⁻² mol L⁻¹ hydrochloric acid with 3 × 10⁻² mol L⁻¹ ammediol pH 9.1 was used as the leading electrolyte, and 3 × 10⁻² mol L⁻¹ β-alanine with 2 × 10⁻² mol L⁻¹ sodium hydroxide pH 10.05 was used as the terminating electrolyte. As the background electrolyte for CZE separation, 2.5 × 10⁻² mol L⁻¹ β-alanine with 2.5 × 10⁻² mol L⁻¹ lysine pH 9.6 was used. All electrolytes contained 0.05% or 0.1% (m/v) hydroxyethylcellulose to suppress the electroosmotic flow. UV detection at wavelength 220 nm was used. Detection limits in order of tens of nmol L⁻¹ were achieved. Good repeatability of migration times (less than 0.33% RSD) and good repeatability of peak areas (less than 7.19% RSD) at concentration level 5 × 10⁻⁸ mol L⁻¹ were observed. Developed ITP–CZE method was applied to determination of brominated phenols in spiked tap and river water samples.     

Fabrication of tailorable pH responsive cationic amphiphilic microgels on a microfluidic device for drug release

Cationic, amphiphilic microgels of differing compositions based on hydrophilic, pH, and thermoresponsive 2‐(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) and hydrophobic, nonionic n‐butyl acrylate (BuA) are synthesized using a lab‐on‐a‐chip device. Hydrophobic oil‐in‐water (o/w) droplets are generated via a microfluidic platform, with the dispersed (droplet) phase containing the DMAEMA and BuA, alongside the hydrophobic cross‐linker, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate, and a free radical initiator in an organic solvent. Finally, the hydrophobic droplets are photopolymerized via a UV light source as they traverse the microfluidic channel to produce the cationic amphiphilic microgels. This platform enables the rapid, automated, and in situ production of amphiphilic microgels, which do not match the core‐shell structure of conventionally prepared microgels but are instead based on random amphiphilic copolymers of DMAEMA and BuA between the hydrophobic cross‐links. The microgels are characterized in terms of their swelling and encapsulation abilities, which are found to be influenced by both the pH response and the hydrophobic content of the microgels. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018 , 56, 59–66     

Determination of inorganic anions in saliva by capillary isotachophoresis

Nitrite, nitrate, iodide and thiocyanate have been quantified in non-smoker and smoker saliva by capillary isotachophoresis (CITP). Hydrochloric acid (10 mmol l⁻¹) adjusted with histidine to pH 6.0 plus 6% poly(vinylpyrrolidone) was used as the leading electrolyte (LE) and 5 mmol l⁻¹ acetic acid as the terminating electrolyte (TE). Linearity was observed from 0.005 to 0.500 mmol l⁻¹ with a coefficient of determination (r²) of 0.999. The separation of anions was achieved in less than 19 min. The minimal sample pretreatment and relatively low running cost make isotachophoresis good alternative to existing methods.     

Assay of acebutolol in pharmaceuticals by analytical capillary isotachophoresis

Acebutolol [N-{3-acetyl-4-[(2-hydroxy-3-(isopropylamino)propoxy]phenyl} butanamide] is a cardioselective beta-blocker with a potent anti-hypertensive and antiarrhythmic effect. The optimised operational system of electrolytes for the newly developed ITP separation of acebutolol consisted of 10mM potassium acetate +10mM acetic acid (pH 4.65) as the leading electrolyte and 10mM beta-alanine with pH approximately 4 (adjusted with acetic acid) as the terminating electrolyte. The driving and detection currents were 75 and 20 microA, respectively and the analysis took approximately 13 min. Under these conditions the effective mobility of acebutolol was determined as 20.7 x 10(-9) m2 V(-1) s(-1). The calibration dependence was rectilinear in the range 0.14-1.4 mg ml(-1) of acebutolol base (r = 0.9995); relative standard deviation (RSD) values were 1.1% and 1.2% (n = 6) when determining 0.42 and 0.98 mg ml(-1) of acebutolol in a pure standard solution. The method, with the limit of detection (LOD) of 0.04 mg ml(-1) and limit of quantification (LOQ) of 0.12 mg ml(-1), was applied to the assay of acebutolol in Sectral tablets, Acecor tablets, Apo-acebutol tablets (nominal content 400 mg of acebutolol per tablet) and Acebirex tablets (nominal content 200 mg of acebutolol per tablet) with RSD = 0.7-1.7% (n = 6). No interference from any excipients present in the tablets was observed. The recoveries ranged from 98.8% to 102.4% as found by the standard addition technique.     

Use of multiple colorimetric indicators for paper-based microfluidic devices

We report here the use of multiple indicators for a single analyte for paper-based microfluidic devices (μPAD) in an effort to improve the ability to visually discriminate between analyte concentrations. In existing μPADs, a single dye system is used for the measurement of a single analyte. In our approach, devices are designed to simultaneously quantify analytes using multiple indicators for each analyte improving the accuracy of the assay. The use of multiple indicators for a single analyte allows for different indicator colors to be generated at different analyte concentration ranges as well as increasing the ability to better visually discriminate colors. The principle of our devices is based on the oxidation of indicators by hydrogen peroxide produced by oxidase enzymes specific for each analyte. Each indicator reacts at different peroxide concentrations and therefore analyte concentrations, giving an extended range of operation. To demonstrate the utility of our approach, the mixture of 4-aminoantipyrine and 3,5-dichloro-2-hydroxy-benzenesulfonic acid, o-dianisidine dihydrochloride, potassium iodide, acid black, and acid yellow were chosen as the indicators for simultaneous semi-quantitative measurement of glucose, lactate, and uric acid on a μPAD. Our approach was successfully applied to quantify glucose (0.5-20 mM), lactate (1-25 mM), and uric acid (0.1-7 mM) in clinically relevant ranges. The determination of glucose, lactate, and uric acid in control serum and urine samples was also performed to demonstrate the applicability of this device for biological sample analysis. Finally results for the multi-indicator and single indicator system were compared using untrained readers to demonstrate the improvements in accuracy achieved with the new system.     

Dried gels from linear low-density polyethylene: Morphology,thermal behavior,and mechanical properties

Dried gels of a linear low-density polyethylene cast from decalin solutions are investigated with particular attention toward structural, thermal, and mechanical properties. The number-average and weight-average molecular weights are M_n = 32,000 and M_w = 160,000. In the concentration range 1.00–0.20, the swollen gels exhibit nearly isotropic shrinkage upon drying, which is relevant to an ideal crosslinked network behavior. For the concentrations below 0.20, a strong departure from the isotropic shrinkage indicates that the chains begin to disengage from the macromolecular network owing to the dilution effect. The melting behavior of the dried gels shows that crystallization from solution improves the crystal perfection notably as concerns the more defective crystals. The concomitant decrease of the crystal thickness judged from small-angle X-ray scattering is ascribed to a reduction of the surface free energy which is consistent with the build up of regular chain-folded macroconformations. The drawability of the dried gels is considerably improved with increasing dilution as a result of the gradual disentanglement of the coils prior to the crystallization in solution. But beyond concentration 0.20, the drawability drops because of the loss of intermolecular cohesion when the chains begin to disengage from the network. The drastic change of yield behavior between the melt-crystallized and solution-crystallized samples reveals a ductile-to-brittle transition in the mechanism of failure of the crystallites at low strain. This phenomenon is related to the improvement of regular chain-folding.     

Recent advances and challenges in temperature monitoring and control in microfluidic devices

Temperature is a critical—yet sometimes overlooked—parameter in microfluidics. Microfluidic devices can experience heating inside their channels during operation due to underlying physicochemical phenomena occurring therein. Such heating, whether required or not, must be monitored to ensure adequate device operation. Therefore, different techniques have been developed to measure and control temperature in microfluidic devices. In this contribution, the operating principles and applications of these techniques are reviewed. Temperature-monitoring instruments revised herein include thermocouples, thermistors, and custom-built temperature sensors. Of these, thermocouples exhibit the widest operating range; thermistors feature the highest accuracy; and custom-built temperature sensors demonstrate the best transduction. On the other hand, temperature control methods can be classified as external- or integrated-methods. Within the external methods, microheaters are shown to be the most adequate when working with biological samples, whereas Peltier elements are most useful in applications that require the development of temperature gradients. In contrast, integrated methods are based on chemical and physical properties, structural arrangements, which are characterized by their low fabrication cost and a wide range of applications. The potential integration of these platforms with the Internet of Things technology is discussed as a potential new trend in the field.     

Comprehensive model of electromigrative transport in microfluidic paper based analytical devices

A complete mathematical model for electromigration in paper-based analytical devices is derived, based on differential equations describing the motion of fluids by pressure sources and EOF, the transport of charged chemical species, and the electric potential distribution. The porous medium created by the cellulose fibers is considered like a network of tortuous capillaries and represented by macroscopic parameters following an effective medium approach. The equations are obtained starting from their open-channel counterparts, applying scaling laws and, where necessary, including additional terms. With this approach, effective parameters are derived, describing diffusion, mobility, and conductivity for porous media. While the foundations of these phenomena can be found in previous reports, here, all the contributions are analyzed systematically and provided in a comprehensive way. Moreover, a novel electrophoretically driven dispersive transport mechanism in porous materials is proposed. Results of the numerical implementation of the mathematical model are compared with experimental data, showing good agreement and supporting the validity of the proposed model. Finally, the model succeeds in simulating a challenging case of free-flow electrophoresis in paper, involving capillary flow and electrophoretic transport developed in a 2D geometry.     

Actuation of adaptive liquid microlens droplet in microfluidic devices: A review

A significant growth of research on adaptive liquid lens is achieved over the past decades, and the field is still attracting increasing attentions, focusing on the transition from the current stage to the commercialized stage. The challenges faced are not limited to fabrication, material, small tuning range in focal lengths, additional control systems, limitations in special actuation methods and so on. In addition, the use of external driving parts or systems induce extra problem on bulky appearance, high cost, low reliability etc. Therefore, adaptive liquid lens will be an interesting research focus in both microfluidics and optofluidics science. This review attempts to summarize and focus on the droplet profile deformation under different driving mechanisms in tunable liquid microlens as well as the application in cameras, cell phone and so on. The driving techniques are generally categorized in terms of mechanisms and driving sources.     

电堆积与等速电泳结合的毛细管电泳进样富集方法的研究

 提出电堆积与等速电泳结合的毛细管电泳进样富集方法 ,并对电堆积和等速电泳进样富集的最佳条件进行了研究。在 15kV电压 ,电堆积进样 70s和等速电泳富集 40s条件下 ,对两种结构相近的药物普萘洛尔和美托洛尔用毛细管区带电泳法进行了分离。pH 4.0 ,30mmol/L醋酸钠 醋酸、30mmol/Lβ 丙氨酸 醋酸和 1.5 mmol/L醋酸钠 醋酸溶液分别作背景 (或前导 )、尾随和样品缓冲液。与常规电迁移进样方法比较 ,信号增强因子约为 2 5 0和16 0 ;总分析时间与常规法相近。     

Automated liquid-solid extraction of pyrene from soil on centrifugal microfluidic devices

Organic pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are present in the environment in increasing concentrations and so are of growing concern. Monitoring these species, particularly on-site, can be both difficult and expensive. This paper presents a novel miniaturised magnetically actuated liquid-solid extraction unit integrated in tandem with a filtration unit and a detection unit on a single centrifugal microfluidic device. A demonstration analyte, pyrene, was rapidly extracted and quantified by UV-absorbance from multiple soil samples. The system showed excellent performance for a system designed for field use. Characterization of two types of passive valves was performed along with an extraction time efficiency study. The system provides a factor of 150 reduction in sample weights and extraction solvent volumes and provides statistically similar recoveries to the conventional method with a pyrene detection limit of 1 ppm (0.03 μg absolute detection limit). The reduction in time and solvent and the potential for field use suggest that this device type may be valuable for environmental monitoring.     

Transport numbers of ionic electrolyte components: A new measuring method based on bidirectional capillary isotachophoresis

A concept of a new isotachophoretic method for measuring transport numbers of ionic components and electromigration transport of solvent in electrolytes, which is free of many drawbacks of other methods evident at high concentrations, is proposed and substantiated.Translated from Elektrokhimiya, Vol. 41, No. 3, 2005, pp. 375–379.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Gorshkov.     

Kinetics and mechanism of the non-isothermal decomposition: I. Some divalent cross-linked metal-alginate ionotropic gels

The kinetics of thermal decomposition of Sn(II), Pb(II), Cd(II) and Hg(II) alginate gels have been studied using thermogravimetry (TG) and derivative thermogravimetry (DTG) in static air. The thermal dehydration of each gel complex was found to occur in one step, whereas the decomposition of the dehydrated complexes occurred in two steps. The kinetic parameters were computed by different models and a tentative decomposition mechanism consistent with the kinetic observations is discussed.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Determination of total phosphorus in soya food samples by capillary isotachophoresis (cITP)

Capillary isotachophoresis (cITP) was applied for the determination of total phosphorus in soya food. The leading electrolyte was 8 mM HCl adjusted with β-alanine to pH=3.55 plus 3 mM bis-tris-propane and 0.2% hydroxyethylcellulose, whereas the terminating electrolyte 5 mM citric acid. Obtained results were compared with the spectrophotometric method. The correlation coefficients were 0.9996 for cITP and 0.9986 for standard method indicating the satisfactory precision of the calibration curves. The separation of anions was achieved within 25 min. Accuracy was determined using standard reference material (non-fat milk powder) and recovery assay based on standard additions method. Obtained results were discussed in respect to the accuracy and statistical parameters. Satisfactory values of recovery ranged between 99.22 and 99.85%, whereas R.S.D.<1% what demonstrate the advantage of cITP method in the routine analyses of phosphorus content in food samples.     

Electrolyte system for fast preparative focusing in wide pH range based on bidirectional isotachophoresis

In this paper, we suggest new electrolyte system for fast preparative electrofocusing in wide pH range. It is based on bidirectional ITP with multiple counterions and spacers created by commercially available defined simple buffers. The migration course of proposed focusing model can be simulated in advance by using separation conditions and electrolyte components that are consequently applied during the experiments. The suggested electrolyte system allows high current densities at the initial stages of focusing without danger of local overheating, which strongly reduces the time needed for analysis completion. The performance of the electrolyte system is demonstrated by the focusing of synthetic colored low molecular weight indicators and proteins in the arrangements with both linear narrow strip and nonwoven fabric sheet with continuous flow.