Magazine Article

On-Chip Microfluidic Components for In Situ Analysis, Separation, and Detection of Amino Acids

TBMG-16976

08/01/2013

Abstract
Content

The Astrobiology Analytical Laboratory at GSFC has identified amino acids in meteorites and returned cometary samples by using liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LCMS). These organic species are key markers for life, having the property of chirality that can be used to distinguish biological from non-biological amino acids. One of the critical components in the benchtop instrument is liquid chromatography (LC) analytical column. The commercial LC analytical column is an over-250-mm-long and 4.6-mm-diameter stainless steel tube filled with functionized microbeads as stationary phase to separate the molecular species based on their chemistry. Miniaturization of this technique for spaceflight is compelling for future payloads for landed missions targeting astrobiology objectives.

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Citation
"On-Chip Microfluidic Components for In Situ Analysis, Separation, and Detection of Amino Acids," Mobility Engineering, August 1, 2013.
Additional Details
Publisher
Published
Aug 1, 2013
Product Code
TBMG-16976
Content Type
Magazine Article
Language
English