Miniaturized Reverse Electrodialysis-Powered Biosensor Using Electrochemiluminescence on Bipolar Electrode

Abstract

We suggest an electrochemiluminescence (ECL)-sensing platform driven by ecofriendly, disposable, and miniaturized reverse electrodialysis (RED) patches as an electric power source. The flexible RED patches composed of ion-exchange membranes (IEMs) can produce voltage required for ECL sensing by simply choosing the appropriate number of IEMs and the ratio of salt concentrations. We integrate the RED patch with a bipolar electrode on the microfluidic chip to demonstrate the proof-of-concept, i.e., glucose detection in the range of 0.5-10 mM by observing ECL emissions with naked eyes. The miniaturized RED-powered biosensing system is widely applicable for electrochemical-sensing platforms. This is expected to be a solution for practical availability of battery-free electrochemical sensors for disease diagnosis in developing countries.