title: Unmanned platform for long-range remote analysis of volatile compounds in air samples.
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.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Química Fundamental-Instituto de Química-Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo - SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Eric T
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: da Costa
authors.forename: Carlos A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Neves
authors.forename: Guilherme M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Hotta
authors.forename: Denis T R
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Vidal
authors.forename: Marcelo F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Barros
authors.forename: Arturo A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Ayon
authors.forename: Carlos D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Garcia
authors.forename: Claudimir Lucio
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: do Lago
mesh_terms: D000144:Acids, Acyclic / Q000032:analysis; D000388:Air / Q000032:analysis*; D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D004553:Electric Conductivity; D046209:Electrophoresis, Microchip / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004867:Equipment Design; D019904:Polymethyl Methacrylate / Q000737:chemistry; D058998:Remote Sensing Technology / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012371:Robotics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D000144:Acids, Acyclic; D000393:Air Pollutants; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds; D019904:Polymethyl Methacrylate