Low-cost fabrication of a paper-based microfluidic using a folded pattern paper

摘要

Despite that microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (mu PADs) provide effective analytical platforms for point-of-care diagnosis in resource-limited areas, it remains challenging to achieve simple and low-cost fabrication of mu PADs. A novel method for fabrication of mu PADs is developed in this study using a folded polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-coated paper mask with a specific pattern to form a sandwich structure with inserted chromatographic paper. PDMS penetrates the target paper from the front and the back sides, and then is cured in the target paper to form legible channels. This method for prototyping mu PADs has many favorable merits including simple operation without the need of trained personnel, fast fabrication and low cost. We further investigated colorimetric detection of melamine in the mu PADs, and it showed a remarkable measurement with a detection limit of 0.1 ppm in aqueous solutions and liquid milk discriminated by the naked eye, which meets the detection limit required by USA and China. The fabricating strategy developed in this study is very promising and attractive for the development of simple mu PADs for point-of-care applications, including diagnostic testing, food safety control and environmental monitoring. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.