High Radiation Environment Nuclear Fragment Separator Magnet

The objective of lab-on-chip (LOC) is to integrate and perform multiple analytical processes on a microchip platform. So far, most LOC research has been focused on electrophoretic separations. Limited progress has been made on multi-process integration, due mainly to the lack of a robust and miniaturized pump that can deliver constant flow and be integrated with LOC devices. Microchip HPLC can and will play an important role in point-of- care measurements, remote sensing and chemical and biological warfare agent detections. Highly parallel configurtaions can enhance the sample throughput considerably with commensurate impact on drug screening and biomarker discovery. A major challenge toward microchip HPLC is the lack of a robust and miniature high-pressure pump that can be integrated with LOC devices. The goal of this project is to address this issue. Under the support of DOE STTR Phase I (DOE SC0006351), we have demonstrated the feasibility of an innovative pump. The pump works like a battery, and therefore we term it a Pressure Power Supply (PPS). A single PPS may only produce a moderate pressure, but a high pressure can be produced if a number of PPS are connected in series. In the STTR Phase I project, we have demonstrated that the pressure output is directly proportional to the number of PPS stacked. Theoretically, we can produce any (high) pressure as long as we connect adequate number of PPS in series. In practice, the upper pressure is limited by the accessories such as tubing connectors, unions, etc. In this Phase II project, we will develop a miniaturized microchip HPLC system (McHPLC) that integrates our serially-stacked EOP, an on-chip smaple injection scheme, and a porous layer open tubular (PLOT) column. We will then couple McHPLC with a mass spectrometer for proteomic analysis of Alzheimer & apos;s disease (AD) at its incipient stages. The McHPLC will have many other applications. Because of its compact size and light weight, it can be used in future Spacelab in the search for extraterrestrial life. It can be used for remote and battlefield Chemical and Biological Warfare Agent detection, since it can easily be carried by a person in a backpack. It can be highly parallelized to increase the throughput for drug compound screening. It can be used for bed-side clinical analysis.