Microfluidic Biosensing Platform for EDC Detection via Upconversion Luminescence

The patent replaces complex mechanical chromatography systems (HPLC/GC) with a microfluidic chip-based biosensing system that uses upconversion luminescence for detection. This substitution eliminates the need for expensive chromatography equipment while maintaining detection capability through a simplified microfluidic platform that integrates mixing, reaction, separation, and detection functions.

The patent uses upconversion nanoparticles as optical proxies to translate chemical interactions into detectable luminescence signals. The nanoparticles serve as signal amplifiers that copy and enhance the detection capability, allowing trace EDCs detection without requiring complex separation equipment.

The patent exploits the unique luminescence color properties of upconversion nanoparticles, which emit light at specific wavelengths (e.g., green, red) that are distinct from background fluorescence. This wavelength-specific emission allows the system to distinguish the signal from background interference, effectively eliminating the harmful background effect that plagues photoelectrochemical methods.

The upconversion luminescence process creates an optically inert detection environment where the nanoparticles are excited by near-infrared light and emit in the visible range, avoiding the background fluorescence that occurs in conventional optical detection. This inert optical environment eliminates background interference while maintaining high measurement precision.

The patent merges multiple functions (mixing, reaction, separation, and detection) into a single integrated microfluidic chip. This consolidation eliminates the need for separate sample pre-treatment steps required by conventional methods, reducing preparation time while maintaining detection precision through the unified platform.

The microfluidic chip performs preliminary mixing and reaction steps automatically as samples enter the system, eliminating manual pre-treatment operations. The integrated design ensures that sample preparation and detection occur in a streamlined sequence, significantly reducing the time loss associated with conventional methods.

The microfluidic chip uses hydraulic flow to transport samples and reagents through integrated channels, enabling precise control of fluid volumes at the microliter or nanoliter scale. This hydraulic system dramatically reduces reagent consumption compared to conventional methods while maintaining detection precision through efficient mixing and reaction zones.

The patent changes the scale parameter from milliliter-level reagent volumes in conventional methods to microliter/nanoliter volumes in the microfluidic system. This parameter change reduces reagent consumption by several orders of magnitude while maintaining detection precision through the enhanced surface-to-volume ratio and efficient mass transport in microchannels.