Health & Environmental Research Online (HERO)


Print Feedback Export to File
1788178 
Journal Article 
Membranes for specific adsorption: immobilizing molecularly imprinted polymer microspheres using electrospun nanofibers 
Büttiker, R; Ebert, J; Hinderling, C; Adlhart, C 
2011 
Yes 
Chimia
ISSN: 0009-4293 
Chimia (Aarau). 2011; 65(3):182-6. [Chimia] 
65 
3 
182-186 
English 
21528654 
WOS:000289227100008 
Molecularly imprinted polymer microspheres were immobilized within a polymer nanofiber membrane by electrospinning. Such membranes simplify the handling of functional microspheres and provide specific recognition capabilities for solid-phase extraction and filtration applications. In this study, microspheres were prepared by precipitation polymerization of methacrylic acid and divinylbenzene as a cross-linker with the target molecule (-)-cinchonidine and then, they were electrospun into a non-woven polyacrylonitrile nanofiber membrane. The composite membrane showed specific affinity for (-)-cinchonidine which was attributed to the functional microspheres as confirmed by Raman microscopy. The target molecule capturing capacity of the composite membrane was 5 mg/g or 25 mg/g immobilized functional microsphere. No difference in target affinity was observed between the immobilized microspheres and the free microspheres. These results reveal that electrospun composite membranes are a feasible approach to immobilizing functional microspheres. 
Biocompatible Materials/chemistry; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Cinchona Alkaloids/chemistry; Electrochemistry; Materials Testing; Membranes, Artificial; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Microspheres; Molecular Imprinting; Nanofibers/chemistry/ultrastructure; Polymers/chemistry; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; Spectrum Analysis, Raman; Vinyl Compounds/chemistry; 1U622LRA8Z; IZ715T4SBU