3D printed flow-through cuvette insert for UV-Vis spectrophotometric and fluorescence measurements

Michał Michalec; Łukasz Tymecki

doi:10.1016/j.talanta.2018.08.026

3D printed flow-through cuvette insert for UV-Vis spectrophotometric and fluorescence measurements

Talanta. 2018 Dec 1:190:423-428. doi: 10.1016/j.talanta.2018.08.026. Epub 2018 Aug 7.

Authors

Michał Michalec¹, Łukasz Tymecki²

Affiliations

¹ University of Warsaw, Faculty of Chemistry, Pasteura 1, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland; University of Warsaw, MISMaP College, Banacha 2C, 02-097 Warsaw, Poland.
² University of Warsaw, Faculty of Chemistry, Pasteura 1, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland. Electronic address: l.tymecki@uw.edu.pl.

PMID: 30172528
DOI: 10.1016/j.talanta.2018.08.026

Abstract

Rapid Prototyping technologies expand the availability of fabrication of plastic objects to non-skilled users that need sophisticated equipment for their research. In this communication, for the very first time, the universal design of photometric-fluorometric, UV-Vis compatible, 3D-printed flow-through cuvette with two optical paths (2 and 10 mm) is introduced. The cuvette insert was made with the use of the most economically viable Fused Material Deposition technology which enables truly one-step manufacturing and easy replicating of the device. A utility of the cuvette was presented in the example of the basic flow injection analysis experiments on the model photometric (bromothymol blue) and fluorometric (fluorescein) dyes and proven by investigation of solubility constant of calcium hydrophosphate dihydrate by determination of phosphate using fluorescence quenching of molybdenum blue-Rhodamine B ion pair formation and calcium reaction with calcein in basic environment.

Keywords: 3D printing; FDM; Flow-through cuvette; Spectrofluorometry; Spectrophotometry.