title: Molecular-imprinted, polymer-coated quartz crystal microbalances for the detection of terpenes.
abstract: A piezoelectric sensor coated with an artificial biomimetic recognition element has been developed for the determination of L-menthol in the liquid phase. A highly specific noncovalently imprinted polymer (MIP) was cast in situ on to the surface of a gold-coated quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) electrode as a thin permeable film. Selective rebinding of the target analyte was observed as a frequency shift quantified by piezoelectric microgravimetry with the QCM. The detectability of L-menthol was 200 ppb with a response range of 0-1.0 ppm. The response of the MIP-QCM to a range of monoterpenes was investigated with the sensor binding menthol in favor of analogous compounds. The sensor was able to distinguish between the D- and L-enantiomers of menthol owing to the enantioselectivity of the imprinted sites. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing enantiomeric resolution within an MIP utilizing a single monomer-functional moiety interaction. It is envisaged that this technique could be employed to determine the concentration of terpenes in the atmosphere.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Physics, The Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK. carl.percival@ntu.ac.uk
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Percival
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Stanley
authors.forename: T M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Galle
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Braithwaite
authors.forename: M I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Newton
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: McHale
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hayes