State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China.
State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China.
Talanta. 2020 May 15;212:120786. doi: 10.1016/j.talanta.2020.120786. Epub 2020 Jan 27.
Perspiration contains valuable information indicating physiological health. For most wearable perspiration sensors, the sensing element contacts with skin directly. Yet lack of precise fluidic manipulation unit limits accurate and continuous analysis considering perspiration aggregation, evaporation loss and electrolyte reabsorption by sweat glands. The potential skin irritation caused by the chemicals in the sensor is also a safety concern. In this work, we report a wearable microfluidic device with fluidic manipulation unit based on capillary force to address these issues. Inspired by wicking materials for wiping perspiration in our daily life, herein, we use biocompatible threads to collect perspiration by capillary absorption. Then the collected perspiration was spontaneously delivered to a hydrophilic microfluidic channel, forming a continuous flow. Electrodes were embedded in the microfluidic channel for continuous electrochemical analysis and to avoid the direct skin contact. On-body tests demonstrated that continuous perspiration collection, transportation and analysis of Na as a proof-of-concept analyte can be achieved using the pump-free epidermal microfluidic device.
汗液包含有生理健康状况的有价值信息。对于大多数可穿戴汗液传感器来说，其传感元件都是直接与皮肤接触。然而，由于缺乏精确的流体操控单元，考虑到汗液的聚集、蒸发损失和汗腺对电解质的再吸收，这限制了对汗液的准确和连续分析。传感器中化学物质引起的潜在皮肤刺激也是一个安全问题。在这项工作中，我们报告了一种基于毛细作用力的带有流体操控单元的可穿戴微流控装置，以解决这些问题。受日常生活中擦拭汗液的吸湿材料的启发，我们使用了具有生物相容性的线来通过毛细吸收收集汗液。然后，收集到的汗液会自发地输送到亲水微流道中，形成连续的流动。电极被嵌入微流道中，用于连续的电化学分析并避免与皮肤直接接触。在体测试表明，无需泵的表皮微流控装置可以实现连续的汗液收集、输送和对 Na 等概念验证分析物的分析。
