UK:Development of a marketable nanoparticle-assisted high-throughput prototype system for chemical speciation measurements of trace elements (DIFFNAL)

根据最近的一项研究，受污染的水、土壤和空气是导致全球至少900万人死亡的疾病的罪魁祸首，每年造成数万亿美元的损失。砷、汞和铬等痕量元素的污染日益引起生态和全球公共健康的关注，并位居环境立法的首位。微量元素的流动性和毒性特别取决于它们的化学形态(或物种)，而不是它们的总含量。例如，虽然三价铬(铬酸盐)可以被认为是一种膳食补充剂，但六价铬(铬酸盐)是有毒的，并具有潜在的致癌作用。由于不同的元素物种表现出非常不同的物理化学性质和不同的毒性，因此越来越多的监管、健康和安全组织要求测量和监测环境中的这些单独的有毒元素物种。然而，目前缺乏任何强有力的物种形成技术，限制了我们监测和控制环境污染的能力。这种分析能力的缺乏也对分析化学的许多其他分支构成了挑战。我们最近开发了一种新的设备(称为DIFFNAL)，它有可能提供对各种样品的物种形成的快速分析。这将膜技术与具有特殊特性的新型可分类活性纳米材料的设计相结合。这项提议寻求建造一种用于铬形态形成的DIFFNAL装置并将其商业化。该项目还寻求成立一家牛津大学衍生公司，该公司将建立新的技术系列并将其商业化，包括单分析物和多分析物DIFFNAL仪器。DIFFNAL是一项全新的技术，原因如下：1-高灵敏度和选择性的离子分离技术2-一步快速分离(&lt；10分钟)，无需或最少处理样品3-无需专门的用户培训4-环保技术，因为不需要有害试剂或溶剂。5-快速重采样和每天处理大量样品的能力6-关键是，它保持了物种的“化学性质”和分布，因此反映了样品中物种的“真实”分级，使其成为能够分析空气敏感或不稳定样品的唯一可用的技术。牛津-Teledyne联盟的具体目标是：1.开发一个功能性单一分析物DIFFNAL阿尔法原型系统，用于包括环境样品在内的不同类型基质中铬的形态分布。2.DIFFNAL装置与电感耦合器件的初步耦合试验。这种与电感耦合等离子体原子发射光谱的初始偶联比电感耦合等离子体质谱仪更受青睐，因为它简单，而且由于低成本而具有潜在的商业化潜力。3.将DIFFNAL的性能与现有技术进行比较，包括高效液相色谱-电感耦合等离子体质谱联用技术。我们的初步分析测试将使用我们现有的伏安-DIFFNAL系统与高效液相-电感耦合等离子体质谱(HPLC-ICP-MS)进行。4.在评估业绩参数的基础上，为DIFFNAL技术制定营销材料和投资招股说明书。将成立一家牛津大学衍生公司(NanoMetalytics)。新的派生将负责开发优先污染物的单分析物和多分析物DIFFNAL形态系统。DIFFNAL系统已经作为物种形成技术获得了专利。因此，这项技术为仪器分析部门提供了一种新颖、有效和低成本的化学形态形成技术。鉴于全球对环境污染物的管制和对痕量元素的环境监测以及相关的化学形态形成成本的增加，这一领域的创新是非常及时的。关键词：DIFFNAL，化学形态形成；痕量元素；水污染，质谱学，电感耦合等离子体质谱仪，电感耦合等离子体发射光谱

Polluted water, soil and air are responsible for the diseases that kill at least nine million people worldwide and cost trillions of dollars every year according to a recent research. Contamination with trace elements such as arsenic, mercury, and chromium of an increasing ecological and global public health concern and at the top of the list for environmental legislations. The mobility and toxicity of trace elements depends especially on their chemical forms (or species) rather than their total content. For example, while trivalent chromium (chromite) can be considered a dietary supplement, hexavalent chromium (chromate) is toxic and potentially carcinogenic. Because different elemental species exhibit very different physiochemical properties and varying toxicities, it is becoming vital and increasingly demanded by many regulatory, health and safety organisations to measure and monitor these individual toxic elemental species in the environment. However, the current lacking in any robust speciation technique limits our ability to monitor and control environmental pollution. This lack of analytical ability also poses a challenge to many other branches of analytical chemistry. We have recently developed a novel device (termed DIFFNAL) that has the potential to provide rapid analysis of speciation of a wide variety of samples. This combines membrane technology with design of novel sortable active nanomaterials with special characteristics. This proposal seeks to build and commercialise a DIFFNAL device for chromium speciation. This project also seeks to form an Oxford University spin-out company that would build and commercialise new lines of the technology including single analyte and multi-analyte DIFFNAL instruments. DIFFNAL is a completely novel technology for the following reasons:1- Highly sensitive and selective ion separation technology2- Single-step and fast separation (< 10 min) with no or minimum sample handling3- No specialised user training required4- An environmentally friendly technology as no harmful reagents or solvents required.5- Capability to re-sample quickly and to process a large number of samples per day6- Critically, it maintains the 'chemical character' and distribution of species and hence reflects the 'true' fractionation of species in a sample, making it the only available technology capable of analysing air-sensitive or unstable samples. The Oxford-Teledyne consortium specific aims are to:1. Develop a functional single analyte DIFFNAL alpha-prototype system for chromium speciation in different types of matrixes including environmental samples. 2. Preliminary coupling tests of the DIFFNAL device with an ICP-OES. This initial coupling with ICP-OES is favoured over ICP-MS because of it simplicity and potential commercialisation due to low cost. 3. Benchmark the performance of DIFFNAL against existing technologies including the coupled HPLC-ICP-MS. Our initial analytical testing will be carried out using our existing Voltammtery-DIFFNAL system vs HPLC-ICP-MS. 4. Upon evaluation of the performance parameters, to develop marketing material and an investment prospectus for DIFFNAL technology.5. An Oxford University spin-out company (NanoMetalytics) with be formed. The new spin-out will be responsible for the development of single- and multi-analyte DIFFNAL speciation systems for priority contaminants. The DIFFNAL system has already been patented as a speciation technology. As such this technology presents the instrumental analytical sector with a novel approach for a novel, effective and low-cost chemical speciation technology. Given the increasing global pressure on regulating environmental contaminants and environmental monitoring of trace elements and the associated costs for chemical speciation, innovation in this area is extremely timely.Keywords: DIFFNAL, Chemical Speciation; trace elements; water pollution, Mass spectrometry, ICP-MS, ICP-OES