Three-dimensional continuous particle focusing in a microfluidic channel via standing surface acoustic waves (SSAW)

Three-dimensional (3D) continuous microparticle focusing has been achieved in a single-layer polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microfluidic channel using a standing surface acoustic wave (SSAW). The SSAW was generated by the interference of two identical surface acoustic waves (SAWs) created by two parallel interdigital transducers (IDTs) on a piezoelectric substrate with a microchannel precisely bonded between them. To understand the working principle of the SSAW-based 3D focusing and investigate the position of the focal point, we computed longitudinal waves, generated by the SAWs and radiated into the fluid media from opposite sides of the microchannel, and the resultant pressure and velocity fields due to the interference and reflection of the longitudinal waves. Simulation results predict the existence of a focusing point which is in good agreement with our experimental observations. Compared with other 3D focusing techniques, this method is non-invasive, robust, energy-efficient, easy to implement, and applicable to nearly all types of microparticles.     

Sheathless elasto-inertial particle focusing and continuous separation in a straight rectangular microchannel

Particle focusing in planar geometries is essentially required in order to develop cost-effective lab-on-a-chips, such as cell counting and point-of-care (POC) devices. In this study, a novel method for sheathless particle focusing, called "Elasto-Inertial Particle Focusing", was demonstrated in a straight microchannel. The particles were notably aligned along the centerline of the straight channel under a pressure-driven flow without any additional external force or apparatus after the addition of an elasticity enhancer: PEO (poly(ethylene oxide)) (～O(100) ppm). As theoretically predicted (elasticity number: El≈O(100)), multiple equilibrium positions (centerline and corners) were observed for the viscoelastic flow without inertia, whereas three-dimensional particle focusing only occurred when neither the elasticity nor the inertia was negligible. Therefore, the three-dimensional particle focusing mechanism was attributed to the synergetic combination of the elasticity and the inertia (elasticity number: El≈O(1-10)). Furthermore, from the size dependence of the elastic force upon particles, we demonstrated that a mixture of 5.9 and 2.4 μm particles was separated at the exit of the channel in viscoelastic flows. We expect that this method can contribute to develop the miniaturized flow cytometry and microdevices for cell and particle manipulation.     

Visualization of microscale particle focusing in diluted and whole blood using particle trajectory analysis

Inertial microfluidics has demonstrated the potential to provide a rich range of capabilities to manipulate biological fluids and particles to address various challenges in biomedical science and clinical medicine. Various microchannel geometries have been used to study the inertial focusing behavior of particles suspended in simple buffer solutions or in highly diluted blood. One aspect of inertial focusing that has not been studied is how particles suspended in whole or minimally diluted blood respond to inertial forces in microchannels. The utility of imaging techniques (i.e., high-speed bright-field imaging and long exposure fluorescence (streak) imaging) primarily used to observe particle focusing in microchannels is limited in complex fluids such as whole blood due to interference from the large numbers of red blood cells (RBCs). In this study, we used particle trajectory analysis (PTA) to observe the inertial focusing behavior of polystyrene beads, white blood cells, and PC-3 prostate cancer cells in physiological saline and blood. Identification of in-focus (fluorescently labeled) particles was achieved at mean particle velocities of up to 1.85 m s(-1). Quantitative measurements of in-focus particles were used to construct intensity maps of particle frequency in the channel cross-section and scatter plots of particle centroid coordinates vs. particle diameter. PC-3 cells spiked into whole blood (HCT = 45%) demonstrated a novel focusing mode not observed in physiological saline or diluted blood. PTA can be used as an experimental frame of reference for understanding the physical basis of inertial lift forces in whole blood and discover inertial focusing modes that can be used to enable particle separation in whole blood.     

Modeling and optimization of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell using particle swarm algorithm with constriction coefficient

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - The present study aims at estimating the values of an electrochemical model parameter of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). A variant of the...     

Continuous cell washing and mixing driven by an ultrasound standing wave within a microfluidic channel

Ultrasound standing wave radiation force and laminar flow have been used to transfer yeast cells from one liquid medium to another (washing) by a continuous field-flow fractionation (FFF) approach. Two co-flowing streams, a cell-free suspending phase (flow rate > 50% of the total flow-through volume) and a yeast suspension, were introduced parallel to the nodal plane of a 3 MHz standing wave resonator. The resonator was fabricated to have a single pressure nodal plane at the centre line of the chamber. Laminar flow ensured a stable interface was maintained as the two suspending phases flowed through the sound field. Initiation of the ultrasound transferred cells to the cell-free phase within 0.5 s. This particle transfer procedure circumvents the pellet formation and re-suspension steps of centrifuge based washing procedures. In addition, fluid mixing was demonstrated in the same chamber at higher sound pressures. The channel operates under negligible back-pressure (cross-section, 0.25 [times] 10 mm) and with only one flow convergence and one flow division step, the channel cannot be easily blocked. The force acting on the cells is small; less than that experienced in a centrifuge generating 100g. The acoustically-driven cell transfer and mixing procedures described may be particularly appropriate for the increasingly complex operations required in molecular biology and microbiology and especially for their conversion to continuous flow processes.     

Measurements of extinction by aerosol particles in the near-infrared using continuous wave cavity ring-down spectroscopy

Cavity ring-down spectroscopy using a fiber-coupled continuous wave distributed feedback laser at a wavelength of 1520 nm has been used to measure extinction of light by samples of nearly monodisperse aerosol particles <1 μm in diameter. A model is tested for the analysis of the sample extinction that is based on the Poisson statistics of the number of particles within the intracavity laser beam: variances of measured extinction are used to derive values of the scattering cross section for size-selected aerosol particles, without need for knowledge of the particle number density or sample length. Experimental parameters that influence the performance of the CRD system and the application and limitations of the statistical model are examined in detail. Determinations are reported of the scattering cross sections for polystyrene spheres (PSSs), sodium chloride, and ammonium sulfate, and, for particles greater than 500 nm in diameter, are shown to be in agreement with the corresponding values calculated using Mie theory or Discrete Dipole Approximation methods. For smaller particles, the experimentally derived values of the scattering cross section are larger than the theoretical predictions, and transmission of a small fraction of larger particles into the cavity is argued to be responsible for this discrepancy. The effects of cubic structure on the determination of optical extinction efficiencies of sodium chloride aerosol particles are examined. Values are reported for the real components of the refractive indices at 1520 nm of PSS, sodium chloride, and ammonium sulfate aerosol particles.     

Comparison of ultrasonic shear wave and dynamic-mechanical measurements in acrylic-type copolymers

An ultrasonic shear wave reflection method was applied to study film formation and temperature dependence of the complex shear modulus (G^*G′ + iG″) in different amorphous films made of aqueous dispersions of acrylic-type copolymers. The data are compared with dynamic-mechanical measurements in the low frequency range. It is shown that the temperature dependence of the storage (G′) and the loss modulus (G″) for both methods can be fitted by the same set of parameters using the Havriliak–Negami function incorporating the Vogel–Fulcher–Tamman–Hesse equation for the temperature dependence of relaxation times. The temperature dependence of the relaxation times obtained from the fits to the ultrasonic shear modulus is compared to the shift factors of the dynamic-mechanical measurements. The agreement between both methods is good. This suggests an almost thermorheological simplicity of the samples for the main glass–rubber relaxation and demonstrates the capacity of the ultrasonic rheometer. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 36: 1703–1711, 1998     

Narrow-band fractionation of proteins from whole cell lysates using isoelectric membrane focusing and nonporous reversed-phase separations

Preparative isoelectric focusing (PIEF) is used to achieve narrow-band fractionation of proteins from whole cell lysates of Escherichia coli (E. coli). Isoelectric membranes create well-defined pH ranges that fractionate proteins by isoelectric point (pI) upon application of an electric potential. A commercial IsoPrime device (Amersham-Pharmacia BioTech) is modified for the PIEF separation to lessen run volumes significantly. Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-D PAGE) analysis of chamber contents indicates that excellent pH fractionation is achieved with little overlap between chambers. PIEF pH fractions are further separated using nonporous reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (NPS-RP-HPLC) and HPLC eluent is analyzed on-line by electrospray ionization-time of flight-mass spectrometry (ESI-TOF-MS) for intact protein molecular weight (MW) analysis. The result is a pI versus MW map of bacterial protein content. IEF fractionation down to 0.1 pH units combined with intact protein MW values result in a highly reproducible map that can be used for comparative analysis of different E. coli strains.     

Measuring acetylene concentrations using a frequency chirped continuous wave diode laser operating in the near infrared

Two frequency chirped continuous wave diode lasers operating in the near infrared (IR) at wavelengths of lambda approximately 1.535 microm and lambda approximately 1.520 microm have been used to measure acetylene concentrations using the P(17) and R(9) rotational lines of the (nu1 + nu3) vibrational combination band. The diode lasers were frequency chirped by applying an electrical current pulse to the laser driver at a repetition rate of greater than 1 kHz. As the laser is operated at high repetition rates, more than 1000 spectra per second can, in principle, be acquired and summed, allowing fast accumulation of data, rapid averaging and consequent improvement of the signal to noise ratio and detection limit. Experiments were performed using a single-pass cell with a path length of 16.4 cm, and also an astigmatic multi-pass absorption cell aligned to give a path length of 56 m. Detection limits corresponding to minimum detectable absorption coefficients, alpha(min), of 5.6 x 10(-5) and 7.8 x 10(-8) cm(-1), respectively, were obtained over a 4 s detection bandwidth. These detection limits would correspond to mixing ratios of 21 parts per million by volume (ppmv) and 59 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) of acetylene at 1 atm in air, with the deleterious effects of pressure broadening accounted for. The single-pass cell was used to perform breakthrough volume (BTV) experiments for the low volume adsorbent traps used to pre-concentrate organic compounds in air, taking advantage of the capability of the system to measure concentrations in real time.     

Population transfer and rapid passage effects in a low pressure gas using a continuous wave quantum cascade laser

A continuous wave quantum cascade laser (cw-QCL) operating at 10 μm has been used to record absorption spectra of low pressure samples of OCS in an astigmatic Herriott cell. As a result of the frequency chirp of the laser, the spectra show clearly the effects of rapid passage on the absorption line shape. At the low chirp rates that can be obtained with the cw-QCL, population transfer between rovibrational quantum states is predicted to be much more efficient than in typical pulsed QCL experiments. This optical pumping is investigated by solving the Maxwell Bloch equations to simulate the propagation of the laser radiation through an inhomogeneously broadened two-level system. The calculated absorption profiles show good quantitative agreement with those measured experimentally over a range of chirp rates and optical thicknesses. It is predicted that at a low chirp rate of 0.13 MHz ns(-1), the population transfer between rovibrational quantum states is 12%, considerably more than that obtained at the higher chirp rates utilised in pulsed QCL experiments.     

Modelling nucleation and particle growth in emulsion copolymerization in continuous loop reactors

A mathematical model for emulsion copolymerization in continuous loop reactors is presented. The flow pattern of the loop reactor can be represented by a loop formed by two tubular reactors with axial dispersion. The mathematical model combines this flow model with the physico-chemical characteristics of the emulsion copolymerization. The outputs of the model are monomer conversion, copolymer composition, particle size distribution and latex viscosity. The model was checked during the redox initiated emulsion copolymerization of vinyl acetate and veova 10 carried out in a completely automated continuous loop reactor.     

Studies on ultrasonic velocity and electrical conductivity of samarium soaps in non-aqueous medium

Summary The ultrasonic velocity of solutions of samarium soaps in non-aqueous medium has been measured at a constant temperature and the results have been used to evaluate the various acoustic parameters. The pre-micellar association and the formation of micelles in samarium soap solutions have been determined by conductometric measurements. The molar conductance at infinite dilution, degree of ionisation and ionisation constant have been evaluated. The results show that samarium soaps behave as weak electrolyte in dilute solutions.

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Untersuchungen zur Ultraschallgeschwindigkeit und elektrischen Leitfähigkeit von Samarium-Seifen in nichtwäßrigem Medium

Zusammenfassung Die Ultraschallgeschwindigkeit in Lösungen von Samarium-Seifen in nichtwäßrigem Medium wurde bei konstanter Temperatur gemessen, und die Ergebnisse wurden zur Auswertung verschiedener akustischer Parameter genutzt. Die vormicellare Assoziation und die Ausbildung von Micellen in Samarium-Seifen-Lösungen wurden mittels konduktometrische Messungen bestimmt. Die molare Leitfähigkeit bei unendlicher Verdünnung, der Ionisierungsgrad und die Ionisationskonstante wurden ermittelt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, daß sich Samarium-Seifen in verdünnten Lösungen als schwache Elektrolyte verhalten.

     

超声细胞粉碎萃取结合超高效液相色谱用于六味地黄丸的整体分析（英文）

针对中药复方制剂六味地黄丸的质量控制提出了一种多指标全药材整体分析新策略。从组成六味地黄丸的每一味药材中选取1~2个药效成分,即选取熟地黄中的毛蕊花糖苷、山茱萸中的莫诺苷和马钱苷、牡丹皮中的丹皮酚和芍药苷、山药中的尿囊素、茯苓中的茯苓酸、泽泻中的23-乙酰泽泻醇B作为六味地黄丸的质量控制指标成分,采用快速、简便、高效的超声细胞粉碎提取(UCGE)法对这8个指标成分进行同步提取。用响应曲面分析中的Box-Behnken模式对UCGE提取过程中对提取效率影响较大的料液比、提取时间和提取温度等参数进行了优化。得到最优的提取条件:料液比1∶45(g/mL)、提取时间40 min、提取温度20℃。进一步利用超高效液相色谱-二极管阵列检测(UPLC-PAD)技术实现多指标成分在同一根色谱柱上的同步分离和检测,从而建立六味地黄丸的多指标全药材整体色谱。采用HSS T3色谱柱(50 mm×2.1 mm,1.8μm),以乙腈-水为流动相进行梯度洗脱,基于指标成分的紫外光谱特征选择5个检测波长同时检测,并进行了线性关系、检出限、定量限、精密度、稳定性、重复性、准确性等方法学验证。该研究为六味地黄丸质量标准的建立提供了依据,同时也为中药复方制剂提供了一种质量控制新模式和新理念。     

Halogen/lithium exchange in hydrocarbon media; basic and continuous reactor studies

The halogen/lithium (X/Li) exchange’s usefulness is challenged by the extreme conditions employed during the conversion of a bromo or an iodo substituent to an organolithium intermediate. Our preliminary disclosure reveals that simple X/Li exchanges can be accomplished at ambient temperature and in doped hydrocarbon media using n-BuLi. Use of a continuous reactor featuring brief reaction times (?1 s) and large product throughputs further facilitates the production of a product resulting from a sequential X/Li exchange and nucleophilic addition.     

Review of cell and particle trapping in microfluidic systems

The ability to obtain ideal conditions for well-defined chemical microenvironments and controlled temporal chemical and/or thermal variations holds promise of high-resolution cell response studies, cell-cell interactions or e.g. proliferation conditions for stem cells. It is a major motivation for the rapid increase of lab-on-a-chip based cell biology research. In view of this, new chip-integrated technologies are at an increasing rate being presented to the research community as potential tools to offer spatial control and manipulation of cells in microfluidic systems. This is becoming a key area of interest in the emerging lab-on-a-chip based cell biology research field. This review focuses on the different technical approaches presented to enable trapping of particles and cells in microfluidic system.     

Comparison of phototoxicity mechanism between pulsed and continuous wave irradiation in photodynamic therapy

A study has been conducted in which HeLa cells are incubated with hematoporphyrin derivative (HpD) for 1 h (1 microgram/ml of HpD in PBS) to compare the use of continuous wave (CW) and pulsed laser (10 Hz repetition rate and 7-9 ns pulse width) light for photodynamic therapy. Cytotoxic effects on the cells are evaluated by the 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2-5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and the fluorescein diacetate (FDA)/propidium iodide (PI) stain method using a flow cytometer. The type of cell death is estimated by analysis of the DNA content and observation of the nuclear morphology. The cytotoxicity ratio of cells irradiated by pulsed laser light is estimated to be lower than that for CW laser light. The viability of cells that received pulsed laser light gradually decreases, whereas no significant changes are found in the cells irradiated with CW laser light with the elapse of post-irradiation time. The type of cell death differs between the pulsed and CW laser light irradiations. These findings suggest that the cytotoxic efficacy of the excitation light source is displayed by the difference in the type of cell death, namely apoptosis or necrosis.     

Determination of 2-methyl derivatives of tamoxifen in cell culture medium using high-performance liquid chromatography and electrochemical detection

The 2-methyl derivatives of tamoxifen (2-methyltamoxifen and 2-methyl-4-hydroxytamoxifen) were extracted from a cell culture medium at pH 5.4 (Earle's Minimum Essential Medium) with an internal standard (tamoxifen) on a phenyl sorbent cartridge. The compounds were then separated by high-performance liquid chromatography on a nitrile column eluted with acetonitrile-methanol-0.05 M sodium dihydrogenphosphate (19:4:11.6:69,v/v) containing 0.11 mmol/l disodium EDTA and determined by electrochemical detection at +1.1 V vs. Ag/AgCl/3 M NaCl. The absolute detection limits were 50 pg for 2-methyl-4-hydroxytamoxifen and 100 pg for tamoxifen and 2-methyltamoxifen at a sensitivity of 1 nA/V.