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Skin-interfaced soft microfluidic systems with modular and reusable electronics for in situ capacitive sensing of sweat loss, rate and conductivity
- Source :
- Lab on a Chip, Lab on a Chip, Royal Society of Chemistry, 2020, 20 (23), pp.4391-4403. ⟨10.1039/D0LC00705F⟩
- Publication Year :
- 2020
- Publisher :
- Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), 2020.
-
Abstract
- Important insights into human health can be obtained through the non-invasive collection and detailed analysis of sweat, a biofluid that contains a wide range of essential biomarkers. Skin-interfaced microfluidic platforms, characterized by soft materials and thin geometries, offer a collection of capabilities for in situ capture, storage, and analysis of sweat and its constituents. In ambulatory uses cases, the ability to provide real-time feedback on sweat loss, rate and content, without visual inspection of the device, can be important. This paper introduces a low-profile skin-interfaced system that couples disposable microfluidic sampling devices with reusable 'stick-on' electrodes and wireless readout electronics that remain isolated from the sweat. An ultra-thin capping layer on the microfluidic platform permits high-sensitivity, contactless capacitive measurements of both sweat loss and sweat conductivity. This architecture avoids the potential for corrosion of the sensing components and eliminates the need for cleaning/sterilizing the electronics, thereby resulting in a cost-effective platform that is simple to use. Optimized electrode designs follow from a combination of extensive benchtop testing, analytical calculations and FEA simulations for two sensing configurations: (1) sweat rate and loss, and (2) sweat conductivity, which contains information about electrolyte content. Both configurations couple to a flexible, wireless electronics platform that digitizes and transmits information to Bluetooth-enabled devices. On-body field testing during physical exercise validates the performance of the system in scenarios of practical relevance to human health and performance.
- Subjects :
- sweat conductivity
Computer science
capacitive measurements
Capacitive sensing
Microfluidics
microfluidics
Biomedical Engineering
Bioengineering
02 engineering and technology
Conductivity
01 natural sciences
Biochemistry
epidermal
sweat rate
Sampling (signal processing)
Hardware_INTEGRATEDCIRCUITS
Wireless
Electronics
[PHYS]Physics [physics]
business.industry
010401 analytical chemistry
General Chemistry
Modular design
021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology
0104 chemical sciences
sweat
wearables
[SDV.IB]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Bioengineering
0210 nano-technology
business
Computer hardware
Loss rate
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 14730189 and 14730197
- Volume :
- 20
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Lab on a Chip
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....1e9fd4784b105d38191dfdc90da2897c