Title: | Unmanned platform for long-range remote analysis of volatile compounds in air samples |
Author(s): | da Costa ET; Neves CA; Hotta GM; Vidal DT; Barros MF; Ayon AA; Garcia CD; do Lago CL; |
Address: | "Departamento de Quimica Fundamental-Instituto de Quimica-Universidade de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo - SP, Brazil" |
ISSN/ISBN: | 1522-2683 (Electronic) 0173-0835 (Linking) |
Abstract: | "This paper describes a long-range remotely controlled CE system built on an all-terrain vehicle. A four-stroke engine and a set of 12-V batteries were used to provide power to a series of subsystems that include drivers, communication, computers, and a capillary electrophoresis module. This dedicated instrument allows air sampling using a polypropylene porous tube, coupled to a flow system that transports the sample to the inlet of a fused-silica capillary. A hybrid approach was used for the construction of the analytical subsystem combining a conventional fused-silica capillary (used for separation) and a laser machined microfluidic block, made of PMMA. A solid-state cooling approach was also integrated in the CE module to enable controlling the temperature and therefore increasing the useful range of the robot. Although ultimately intended for detection of chemical warfare agents, the proposed system was used to analyze a series of volatile organic acids. As such, the system allowed the separation and detection of formic, acetic, and propionic acids with signal-to-noise ratios of 414, 150, and 115, respectively, after sampling by only 30 s and performing an electrokinetic injection during 2.0 s at 1.0 kV" |
Keywords: | "Acids, Acyclic/analysis Air/*analysis Air Pollutants/*analysis Electric Conductivity Electrophoresis, Microchip/*instrumentation Equipment Design Polymethyl Methacrylate/chemistry Remote Sensing Technology/*instrumentation Robotics/*instrumentation Volati;" |
Notes: | "Medlineda Costa, Eric T Neves, Carlos A Hotta, Guilherme M Vidal, Denis T R Barros, Marcelo F Ayon, Arturo A Garcia, Carlos D do Lago, Claudimir Lucio eng SC3 GM081085/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Germany 2012/09/12 Electrophoresis. 2012 Sep; 33(17):2650-9. doi: 10.1002/elps.201200273" |