Lab-on-a-chip detects contaminants in air

A novel lab-on-a-chip technology successfully measures trace amounts of contaminants in the air. A team from the University of Michigan was contracted by the Department of Defense to test prototype devices to detect trichloroethylene, or TCE,on Utah’s Hill Air Force Base. Even in the presence of 50 other contaminants, the device was able to find extremely low levels of the target contaminant. "Most lab-on-a-chip technologies are used for biomedical analysis of liquids," project director Ted Zeller said. "Our technology is designed for monitoring contaminants in the air, and this groundbreaking study is the first to prove that it can work outside the laboratory in real-life applications." This technology is also being adapted to measure levels of industrial chemicals in the breath and saliva of workers who have been exposed.