NanoSYD Center, Mads Clausen Institute, University of Southern Denmark, 6400 Sønderborg, Denmark.
AmiNIC ApS, 5500 Middelfart, Denmark.
Sensors (Basel). 2021 Sep 9;21(18):6041. doi: 10.3390/s21186041.
Micro-cantilever sensors are a known reliable tool for gas sensing in industrial applications. We have demonstrated the application of cantilever sensors on the detection of a meat freshness volatile biomarker (cadaverine), for determination of meat and fish precise expiration dates. For achieving correct target selectivity, the cantilevers need to be functionalized with a cadaverine-selective binder, based on a cyclam-derivative. Cantilever surface properties such as surface energy strongly influence the binder morphology and material clustering and, therefore, target binding. In this paper, we explore how chemical and physical surface treatments influence cantilever surface, binder morphology/clustering and binding capabilities. Sensor measurements with non-controlled surface properties are presented, followed by investigations on the binder morphology versus surface energy and cadaverine capture. We demonstrated a method for hindering binder crystallization on functionalized surfaces, leading to reproducible target capture. The results show that cantilever surface treatment is a promising method for achieving a high degree of functionalization reproducibility for industrial cantilever sensors, by controlling binder morphology and uniformity.
微悬臂梁传感器是工业应用中气体传感的可靠工具。我们已经证明了悬臂梁传感器在检测肉类新鲜度挥发性生物标志物（尸胺）方面的应用，用于确定肉类和鱼类的精确保质期。为了实现正确的目标选择性，需要用基于环脒衍生物的尸胺选择性结合物对悬臂梁进行功能化。悬臂梁表面的性质，如表面能，强烈影响结合物的形态和材料聚集，因此也影响目标结合。在本文中，我们探讨了化学和物理表面处理如何影响悬臂梁表面、结合物形态/聚集和结合能力。我们展示了具有非受控表面性质的传感器测量结果，然后研究了结合物形态与表面能和尸胺捕获之间的关系。我们证明了一种在功能化表面上阻止结合物结晶的方法，从而实现了可重复的目标捕获。结果表明，通过控制结合物的形态和均匀性，悬臂梁表面处理是实现工业用悬臂梁传感器高功能化重现性的一种很有前途的方法。
