Monolith Adsorbent for Rapid Sample Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional solid-phase micro extraction (SPME) and stir bar sorption extraction (SBSE) methods face challenges in rapidly extracting samples with high recovery ratios, as they require thicker stationary phases, longer extraction times, and are prone to thermal decomposition, especially when dealing with small sample amounts or low concentrations, and are limited by the small surface area of PDMS-coated glass fibers.
Innovation Solution
A monolith adsorbent with an adsorbing material exposed on its surface, featuring materials like activated carbon, graphite, and zeolites, and treated with hydrophobic or hydrophilic compounds, which increases the surface area and enhances adsorption efficiency, allowing for rapid and efficient sample extraction with minimal solvent use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If the volume of the stationary phase is increased to improve the partition coefficient and adsorption capacity, then the adsorbed sample amount increases, but the thickness of the stationary phase increases leading to extended extraction time and delayed equilibrium
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a monolith porous body as the stationary phase support, which provides high surface area and porosity. This allows sufficient adsorption capacity without increasing the overall thickness of the stationary phase layer, thereby maintaining fast mass transfer and short extraction time while achieving high adsorbed sample amount.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a composite structure combining a monolith porous body with a liquid phase coating. This composite material integrates the high surface area and porosity of the monolith with the partitioning capability of the liquid phase, enabling both high adsorption capacity and rapid equilibrium without increasing stationary phase thickness.
2Quantity of substance
If the stationary phase thickness is increased to hold more liquid phase, then the absolute recovery ratio improves, but the time to reach equilibrium and extract the adsorbed target substance increases
Solution Approach 1:
The monolith porous body provides high porosity and surface area, allowing a larger volume of liquid phase to be held within a thin layer. This enables sufficient liquid phase volume for high recovery ratio while maintaining thin stationary phase thickness for rapid equilibrium and short extraction duration.
3Quantity of substance
If the stationary phase volume is increased to improve adsorption capacity, then more target components can be retained, but the heat extraction time increases causing thermal decomposition of target components
Solution Approach 1:
The monolith porous body enables high target component retention capacity within a thin stationary phase layer. The reduced thickness allows rapid heat extraction and minimal thermal exposure, preventing thermal decomposition while maintaining high retained target component amount.
4Device complexity
If PDMS is applied only to the surface of the glass fiber to maintain simplicity, then the apparatus remains simple, but the surface area is small limiting the amount of liquid phase and reducing absolute recovery ratio
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the simple PDMS-coated glass fiber with a monolith porous body that inherently provides high surface area and porosity. This maintains operational simplicity while dramatically increasing the amount of liquid phase that can be held, thereby improving absolute recovery ratio.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The monolith adsorbent enables rapid adsorption and desorption of samples, reduces thermal decomposition, and improves recovery ratios, facilitating high-concentration analysis with sharper chromatogram peaks, while accommodating a smaller form factor suitable for GC and LC analysis.
Implementation Method 1
a monolith adsorbent which has an adsorbing material contained in a monolith structure body and exposed on the surface of the structure body
Implementation Method 2
the thus held solute components can be inserted into the injection port of GC just as they are and vaporized and desorbed inside the injection port of GC
Data Source
AI summary
The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a monolith adsorbent which can adsorb a target sample easily in a short time or regardless of whether the amount of the sample is small or large and extract the sample with a small amount of solvent, and easily secure the sample necessary for analysis, and a method and an apparatus for adsorption and retention using the same. The present invention is a monolith adsorbent formed by allowing a monolith structure body to contain an adsorbing material such as activated carbon or graphite, exposing the adsorbing material on the surface of the structure body and further surface-treating the surface of the monolith structure body with a hydrophobic or hydrophilic compound or a resin.