Review of pretreatment and analytical methods for environmental endocrine disruptors: phthalates

Phthalates, known as phthalate esters (PAEs), are among the most ubiquitous pervasive environmental endocrine disruptors, extensively utilized globally in various facets of modern life due to their irreplaceable role as plasticizers. The exponential production and utilization of plastic goods have substantially escalated plastic waste accumulation. Consequently, PAEs have infiltrated the environment, contaminating food and drinking water reservoirs, posing notable threats to human health. This review provides a comprehensive overview of research advancements in PAE detection and identifies key focal points from 2000 to 2022, utilizing the Web of Science Core Collection. Sample pretreatment and analytical methodologies for PAEs are examined based on bibliometric analysis findings. Pretreatment methods mainly include dispersive solid-phase extraction, magnetic solid-phase extraction, molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction, and solid-phase microextraction. Laboratory analytical methods such as gas chromatography, liquid chromatography, and immunoassay have been described. Additionally, a discussion on the advantages and challenges of rapid on-site detection methods compared with traditional approaches is presented in alignment with the evolving demands of PAEs detection. Based on the current research progress, future studies can focus on the demand of rapid detection of PAEs.

Computational spectrometer with multi-channel cascaded silicon add-drop micro-ring resonators

The increasing demand for portable spectral analysis has driven the development of miniaturized spectrometers. Computational spectrometers, based on algorithmic reconstruction, are a potential solution to meet this demand. We report on the design and implementation of an integrated computational spectrometer on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate. The device is based on a 5-stage binary tree of cascaded silicon add-drop micro-ring resonators (MRRs). One of the 32 branches serves as the reference channel. Each of the other 31 branches has 4 cascaded MRRs with arbitrary coupling coefficients, cavity perimeters, and center distances. By using add-drop MRRs, we have 62 filter channels with 31 branches. It has no intrinsic structural reflection and scattering losses other than the excess loss in the 1 × 2 splitters and the waveguide propagation loss. The chip has a footprint of 1.5 mm2 and a resolution of 0.11 nm in the C-band. Broadband spectrum reconstruction with bandwidth >10 nm is also demonstrated.

Monolithic thin-film lithium niobate broadband spectrometer with one nanometre resolution

Miniaturised optical spectrometers are attractive due to their small footprint, low weight, robustness and stability even in harsh environments such as space or industrial facilities. We report on a stationary-wave integrated Fourier-transform spectrometer featuring a measured optical bandwidth of 325 nm and a theoretical spectral resolution of 1.2 nm. We fabricate and test on lithium niobate-on-insulator to take full advantage of the platform, namely electro-optic modulation, broad transparency range and the low optical loss achieved thanks to matured fabrication techniques. We use the electro-optic effect and develop innovative layouts to overcome the undersampling limitations and improve the spectral resolution, thus providing a framework to enhance the performance of all devices sharing the same working principle. With our work, we add another important element to the portfolio of integrated lithium-niobate optical devices as our spectrometer can be combined with multiple other building blocks to realise functional, monolithic and compact photonic integrated circuits.

Advances in cost-effective integrated spectrometers

The proliferation of Internet-of-Things has promoted a wide variety of emerging applications that require compact, lightweight, and low-cost optical spectrometers. While substantial progresses have been made in the miniaturization of spectrometers, most of them are with a major focus on the technical side but tend to feature a lower technology readiness level for manufacturability. More importantly, in spite of the advancement in miniaturized spectrometers, their performance and the metrics of real-life applications have seldomly been connected but are highly important. This review paper shows the market trend for chip-scale spectrometers and analyzes the key metrics that are required to adopt miniaturized spectrometers in real-life applications. Recent progress addressing the challenges of miniaturization of spectrometers is summarized, paying a special attention to the CMOS-compatible fabrication platform that shows a clear pathway to massive production. Insights for ways forward are also presented.

Printed Circuit Boards: The Layers' Functions for Electronic and Biomedical Engineering

This paper describes the fabrication opportunities that Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) offer for electronic and biomedical engineering. Historically, PCB substrates have been used to support the components of the electronic devices, linking them using copper lines, and providing input and output pads to connect the rest of the system. In addition, this kind of substrate is an emerging material for biomedical engineering thanks to its many interesting characteristics, such as its commercial availability at a low cost with very good tolerance and versatility, due to its multilayer characteristics; that is, the possibility of using several metals and substrate layers. The alternative uses of copper, gold, Flame Retardant 4 (FR4) and silver layers, together with the use of vias, solder masks and a rigid and flexible substrate, are noted. Among other uses, these characteristics have been using to develop many sensors, biosensors and actuators, and PCB-based lab-on chips; for example, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) amplification devices for Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). In addition, several applications of these devices are going to be noted in this paper, and two tables summarizing the layers' functions are included in the discussion: the first one for metallic layers, and the second one for the vias, solder mask, flexible and rigid substrate functions.

Microfluidic encapsulation for controlled release and its potential for nanofertilisers

Nanotechnology is increasingly being utilized to create advanced materials with improved or new functional attributes. Converting fertilizers into a nanoparticle-form has been shown to improve their efficacy but the current procedures used to fabricate nanofertilisers often have poor reproducibility and flexibility. Microfluidic systems, on the other hand, have advantages over traditional nanoparticle fabrication methods in terms of energy and materials consumption, versatility, and controllability. The increased controllability can result in the formation of nanoparticles with precise and complex morphologies (e.g., tuneable sizes, low polydispersity, and multi-core structures). As a result, their functional performance can be tailored to specific applications. This paper reviews the principles, formation, and applications of nano-enabled delivery systems fabricated using microfluidic approaches for the encapsulation, protection, and release of fertilizers. Controlled release can be achieved using two main routes: (i) nutrients adsorbed on nanosupports and (ii) nutrients encapsulated inside nanostructures. We aim to highlight the opportunities for preparing a new generation of highly versatile nanofertilisers using microfluidic systems. We will explore several main characteristics of microfluidically prepared nanofertilisers, including droplet formation, shell fine-tuning, adsorbate fine-tuning, and sustained/triggered release behavior.

Precise Microfluidic Luminescent Sensor Platform with Controlled Injection System

Efforts have been devoted to screening various prevalent diseases, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), which is currently the most widely used, has high accuracy, but it requires several facilities and takes a relatively long time to check; so, new testing technology is necessary for a higher test efficiency. A chemiluminescence (CL) sensor is a relatively simple device and suitable as an alternative because it can detect very precise specimens. However, in measurements via CL, the quantitative formulation of reagents that cause color development is important. In the case of mixing using micropipettes, precise analysis is possible, but this technique is limited by uncontrollable errors or deviations in detection amounts. In addition, in using a microfluidic chip to increase field applicability, a syringe pump or other quantification injection tools are required, so problems must be overcome for practical use. Therefore, in this study, a microchip was designed and manufactured to supply a sample of a certain volume by simply blowing air and injecting a sample into the chamber. By utilizing the luminescence reaction of luminol, CuSO4 and H2O2 the performance of the prepared chip was confirmed, and the desired amount of the sample could be injected with a simple device with an error rate of 2% or less. For feasible applications, an experiment was performed to quantitatively analyze thrombin, a biomarker of heart disease. Results demonstrated that biomarkers could be more precisely detected using the proposed microchips than using micropipettes.

Evolution of Plant Virus Diagnostics Used in Australian Post Entry Quarantine

As part of a special edition for MDPI on plant virology in Australia, this review provides a brief high-level overview on the evolution of diagnostic techniques used in Australian government Post-Entry Quarantine (PEQ) facilities for testing imported plants for viruses. A comprehensive range of traditional and modern diagnostic approaches have historically been employed in PEQ facilities using bioassays, serological, and molecular techniques. Whilst these techniques have been effective, they are time consuming, resource intensive and expensive. The review highlights the importance of ensuring the best available science and diagnostic developments are constantly tested, evaluated, and implemented by regulators to ensure primary producers have rapid and safe access to new genetics to remain productive, sustainable and competitive.

Numerical and Experimental Study on Mixing Performances of Simple and Vortex Micro T-Mixers

Vortex flow increases the interface area of fluid streams by stretching along with providing continuous stirring action to the fluids in micromixers. In this study, experimental and numerical analyses on a design of micromixer that creates vortex flow were carried out, and the mixing performance was compared with a simple micro T-mixer. In the vortex micro T-mixer, the height of the inlet channels is half of the height of the main mixing channel. The inlet channel connects to the main mixing channel (micromixer) at the one end at an offset position in a fashion that creates vortex flow. In the simple micro T-mixer, the height of the inlet channels is equal to the height of the channel after connection (main mixing channel). Mixing of fluids and flow field have been analyzed for Reynolds numbers in a range from 1–80. The study has been further extended to planar serpentine microchannels, which were combined with a simple and a vortex T-junction, to evaluate and verify their mixing performances. The mixing performance of the vortex T-mixer is higher than the simple T-mixer and significantly increases with the Reynolds number. The design is promising for efficiently increasing mixing simply at the T-junction and can be applied to all micromixers.

Ultrafast structural molecular dynamics investigated with 2D infrared spectroscopy methods

Ultrafast, multi-dimensional infrared (IR) spectroscopy has been advanced in recent years to a versatile analytical tool with a broad range of applications to elucidate molecular structure on ultrafast timescales, and it can be used for samples in a many different environments. Following a short and general introduction on the benefits of 2D IR spectroscopy, the first part of this chapter contains a brief discussion on basic descriptions and conceptual considerations of 2D IR spectroscopy. Outstanding classical applications of 2D IR are used afterwards to highlight the strengths and basic applicability of the method. This includes the identification of vibrational coupling in molecules, characterization of spectral diffusion dynamics, chemical exchange of chemical bond formation and breaking, as well as dynamics of intra- and intermolecular energy transfer for molecules in bulk solution and thin films. In the second part, several important, recently developed variants and new applications of 2D IR spectroscopy are introduced. These methods focus on (i) applications to molecules under two- and three-dimensional confinement, (ii) the combination of 2D IR with electrochemistry, (iii) ultrafast 2D IR in conjunction with diffraction-limited microscopy, (iv) several variants of non-equilibrium 2D IR spectroscopy such as transient 2D IR and 3D IR, and (v) extensions of the pump and probe spectral regions for multi-dimensional vibrational spectroscopy towards mixed vibrational-electronic spectroscopies. In light of these examples, the important open scientific and conceptual questions with regard to intra- and intermolecular dynamics are highlighted. Such questions can be tackled with the existing arsenal of experimental variants of 2D IR spectroscopy to promote the understanding of fundamentally new aspects in chemistry, biology and materials science. The final part of the chapter introduces several concepts of currently performed technical developments, which aim at exploiting 2D IR spectroscopy as an analytical tool. Such developments embrace the combination of 2D IR spectroscopy and plasmonic spectroscopy for ultrasensitive analytics, merging 2D IR spectroscopy with ultra-high-resolution microscopy (nanoscopy), future variants of transient 2D IR methods, or 2D IR in conjunction with microfluidics. It is expected that these techniques will allow for groundbreaking research in many new areas of natural sciences.

A Rapid Magnetofluidic Micromixer Using Diluted Ferrofluid

Effective and rapid mixing is essential for various chemical and biological assays. The present work describes a simple and low-cost micromixer based on magnetofluidic actuation. The device takes advantage of magnetoconvective secondary flow, a bulk flow induced by an external magnetic field, for mixing. A superparamagnetic stream of diluted ferrofluid and a non-magnetic stream are introduced to a straight microchannel. A permanent magnet placed next to the microchannel induced a non-uniform magnetic field. The magnetic field gradient and the mismatch in magnetic susceptibility between the two streams create a body force, which leads to rapid and efficient mixing. The micromixer reported here could achieve a high throughput and a high mixing efficiency of 88% in a relatively short microchannel.

An Interference-Assisted Thermal Bonding Method for the Fabrication of Thermoplastic Microfluidic Devices

Solutions for the bonding and sealing of micro-channels in the manufacturing process of microfluidic devices are limited; therefore, further technical developments are required to determine these solutions. In this study, a new bonding method for thermoplastic microfluidic devices was developed by combining an interference fit with a thermal treatment at low pressure. This involved a process of first injection molding thermoplastic substrates with a microchannel structure, and then performing bonding experiments at different bonding conditions. The results indicated the successful bonding of microchannels over a wide range of bonding pressures with the help of the interference fit. The study also determined additional advantages of the proposed bonding method by comparing the method with the conventional thermal bonding method.

Influence of Sample Volume and Solvent Evaporation on Absorbance Spectroscopy in a Microfluidic "Pillar-Cuvette"

Spectroscopic analysis of solutions containing samples at high concentrations or molar absorptivity can present practical challenges. In absorbance spectroscopy, short optical path lengths or multiple dilution is required to bring the measured absorbance into the range of the Beer's Law calibration. We have previously reported an open "pillar-cuvette" with a micropillar array that is spontaneously filled with a precise (nL or μL) volume to create the well-defined optical path of, for example, 10 to 20 μm. Evaporation should not be ignored for open cuvettes and, herein, the volume of loaded sample and the rate of evaporation from the cuvette are studied. It was found that the volume of loaded sample (between 1 and 10 μL) had no effect on the Beer's Law calibration for methyl orange solutions (molar absorptivity of (2.42 ± 0.02)× 10(4) L mol(-1) cm(-1)) for cuvettes with a 14.2 ± 0.2 μm path length. Evaporation rates of water from methyl orange solutions were between 2 and 5 nL s(-1) (30 - 40% relative humidity; 23°C), depending on the sample concentration and ambient conditions. Evaporation could be reduced by placing a cover slip several millimeters above the cuvette. Importantly, the results show that a "drop-and-measure" method (measurement within ∼3 s of cuvette loading) eliminates the need for extrapolation of the absorbance-time data for accurate analysis of samples.

Pillar cuvettes: capillary-filled, microliter quartz cuvettes with microscale path lengths for optical spectroscopy

The goal of most analytical techniques is to reduce the lower limit of detection; however, it is sometimes necessary to do the opposite. High sample concentrations or samples with high molar absorptivity (e.g., dyes and metal complexes) often require multiple dilution steps or laborious sample preparation prior to spectroscopic analysis. Here, we demonstrate dilution-free, one-step UV-vis spectroscopic analysis of high concentrations of platinum(IV) hexachloride in a micropillar array, that is, "pillar cuvette". The cuvette is spontaneously filled by wicking of the liquid sample into the micropillar array. The pillar height (thus, the film thickness) defines the optical path length, which was reduced to between 10 and 20 μm in this study (3 orders of magnitude smaller than in a typical cuvette). Only one small droplet (∼2 μL) of sample is required, and the dispensed volume need not be precise or even known to the analyst for accurate spectroscopy measurements. For opaque pillars, we show that absorbance is linearly related to platinum concentration (the Beer-Lambert Law). For fully transparent or semitransparent pillars, the measured absorbance was successfully corrected for the fractional surface coverage of the pillars and the transmittance of the pillars and reference. Thus, both opaque and transparent pillars can be applied to absorbance spectroscopy of high absorptivity, microliter samples. It is also shown here that the pillar array has a useful secondary function as an integrated (in-cuvette) filter for particulates. For pillar cuvette measurements of platinum solutions spiked with 6 μm diameter polystyrene spheres, filtered and unfiltered samples gave identical spectra.

Microfluidic and lab-on-a-chip preparation routes for organic nanoparticles and vesicular systems for nanomedicine applications

In recent years, advancements in the fields of microfluidic and lab-on-a-chip technologies have provided unique opportunities for the implementation of nanomaterial production processes owing to the miniaturisation of the fluidic environment. It has been demonstrated that microfluidic reactors offer a range of advantages compared to conventional batch reactors, including improved controllability and uniformity of nanomaterial characteristics. In addition, the fast mixing achieved within microchannels, and the predictability of the laminar flow conditions, can be leveraged to investigate the nanomaterial formation dynamics. In this article recent developments in the field of microfluidic production of nanomaterials for drug delivery applications are reviewed. The features that make microfluidic reactors a suitable technological platform are discussed in terms of controllability of nanomaterials production. An overview of the various strategies developed for the production of organic nanoparticles and colloidal assemblies is presented, focusing on those nanomaterials that could have an impact on nanomedicine field such as drug nanoparticles, polymeric micelles, liposomes, polymersomes, polyplexes and hybrid nanoparticles. The effect of microfluidic environment on nanomaterials formation dynamics, as well as the use of microdevices as tools for nanomaterial investigation is also discussed.

Micromixing within microfluidic devices

Micromixing is a crucial process within microfluidic systems such as micro total analysis systems (μTAS). A state-of-art review on microstructured mixing devices and their mixing phenomena is given. The review first presents an overview of the characteristics of fluidic behavior at the microscale and their implications in microfluidic mixing processes. According to the two basic principles exploited to induce mixing at the microscale, micromixers are generally classified as being passive or active. Passive mixers solely rely on pumping energy, whereas active mixers rely on an external energy source to achieve mixing. Typical types of passive micromixers are discussed, including T- or Y-shaped, parallel lamination, sequential, focusing enhanced mixers, and droplet micromixers. Examples of active mixers using external forces such as pressure field, electrokinetic, dielectrophoretic, electrowetting, magneto-hydrodynamic, and ultrasound to assist mixing are presented. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of mixing in a microfluidic environment are discussed.

A low-voltage nano-porous electroosmotic pump

A low-voltage electroosmotic (EO) micropump based on an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) nano-porous membrane with platinum electrodes coated on both sides has been designed, fabricated, tested, and analyzed. The maximum flow rate of 0.074 ml min(-1) V(-1) cm(-2) for a membrane with porosity of 0.65 was obtained. A theoretical model, considering the head loss along the entire EO micropump system and the finite electrical double layer (EDL) effect on the flow rate, is developed for the first time to analyze the performance of the EO micropump. The theoretical and experimental results are in good agreement. It is revealed that the major head loss could remarkably decrease the flow rate, which thus should be taken into account for the applications of the EO micropump in various Lab-on-a-chip (LOC) devices. However, the effect of the minor head loss on the flow rate is negligible. The resulting flow rate increases with increasing porosity of the porous membrane and kappaa, the ratio of the radius of the nanopore to the Debye length.

Applications of micromixing technology

This review presents an application of micromixer technologies, which have driven a number of critical research trends over the past few decades, particularly for chemical and biological fields. Micromixer technologies in this review are categorized according to their applications: (1) chemical applications, including chemical synthesis, polymerization, and extraction; (2) biological applications, including DNA analysis, biological screening enzyme assays, protein folding; and (3) detection/analysis of chemical or biochemical content combined with NMR, FTIR, or Raman spectroscopies. In the chemical application, crystallization, extraction, polymerization, and organic synthesis have been reported, not only for laboratory studies, but also for industrial applications. Microscale techniques are used in chemical synthesis to develop microreactors. In clinical medicine and biological studies, microfluidic systems have been widely applied to the identification of biochemical products, diagnosis, drug discovery, and investigation of disease symptoms. The biological and biochemical applications also include enzyme assays, biological screening assays, cell lysis, protein folding, and biological analytical assays. Nondestructive analytical/detection methods have yielded a number of benefits to chemical and biochemical processes. In this chapter, we introduce analytical methods those are frequently integrated into micromixing technologies, such as NMR, FT-IR, and Raman spectroscopies. From the study of micromixers, we discovered that the Re number and mixing time depends on the specific application, and we clustered micromixers in various applications according to the Re number and mixing performance (mixing time). We expect that this clustering will be helpful in designing of micromixers for specific applications.

Microchemical systems for continuous-flow synthesis

Microchemical systems have evolved rapidly over the last decade with extensive chemistry applications. Such systems enable discovery and development of synthetic routes while simultaneously providing increased understanding of underlying pathways and kinetics. We review basic trends and aspects of microsystems as they relate to continuous-flow microchemical synthesis. Key literature reviews are summarized and principles governing different microchemical operations discussed. Current trends and limitations of microfabrication, micromixing, chemical synthesis in microreactors, continuous-flow separations, multi-step synthesis, and integration of analytics are delineated. We conclude by summarizing the major challenges and outlook related to these topics.

An optical approach for the determination of droplet volumes in nanodispensing

This paper looks at the use of drop-on-demand technology in automated life science laboratories. One significant feature of the droplets generated is the enormously high uniformity under constant conditions. However, there is also a relatively strong dependency on environmental conditions. Many different kinds of liquids are used in laboratory applications, some with unknown properties in advance. In light of this and the special way in which the droplets are created, there is one major question which needs answering in relation to the use of this technology in the area of laboratory automation: What is the volume of the drops generated? This paper will present a solution which can be applied in practice. Besides the technical implementation demonstrated, further alternatives will also be presented. Ultimately, dosing systems with greater autonomy should result from the optimizations demonstrated in this paper.

Simulation and visualization of flow pattern in microarrays for liquid phase oligonucleotide and peptide synthesis

Microfluidic microarrays have been developed for economical and rapid parallel synthesis of oligonucleotide and peptide libraries. For a synthesis system to be reproducible and uniform, it is crucial to have a uniform reagent delivery throughout the system. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is used to model and simulate the microfluidic microarrays to study geometrical effects on flow patterns. By proper design geometry, flow uniformity could be obtained in every microreactor in the microarrays.

Concentration and binary separation of micro particles for droplet-based digital microfluidics

This paper describes a concept of concentration and binary separation of particles and its experimental confirmations for digital microfluidics where droplets are driven by the mechanism of electrowetting-on-dielectric (EWOD). As a fundamental separation unit, a binary separation scheme is developed, separating two different types of particles in one droplet into two droplets, one type each. The separation scheme consists of three distinctive steps, each with their own challenges: (1) isolate two different types of particles by electrophoresis into two regions inside a mother droplet, (2) physically split the mother droplet into two daughter droplets by EWOD actuation so that each type of particle is concentrated in each daughter droplet, and (3) free the daughter droplets from the separation site by EWOD to ready them for follow-up microfluidic operations. By applying a similar procedure to a droplet containing only one type of particle, two daughter droplets of different particle concentrations can be created. Using negatively charged carboxylate modified latex (CML) particles, 83% of the total particles are concentrated in a daughter droplet. Successful binary separation is also demonstrated using negatively charged CML particles and no-charge-treated polystyrene particles. Despite the undesired vortex developed inside the mother droplet, about 70% of the total CML particles are concentrated in one daughter droplet while about 70% of the total polystyrene particles are concentrated in the other daughter droplet.