In order to prevent membrane breaking, I rebored the acrylic plates for larger bolts and added compression springs to regulate the clamping force on the chips. I also flushed the devices at the vivarium where the animal experiments take place. There…
Category: NRG
Gap Junction Formation Across SiO2 Nanomembranes
Background The purpose of this experiment is to investigate the formation of gap junctions between co-cultured HUVEC and ADSC across SiO2 membranes. Gap junctions are specialized intercellular connections through which nutrients and small molecules can be transported. HUVEC will be stained with CFDA (green) and ADSC will be stained…
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Imidazole functionalized graphene oxide/PEBAX mixed matrix membranes for efficient CO2 capture
SEPPUR-D-16-00198 Abstract Mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) were composed of imidazole functionalized graphene oxide (ImGO), a CO2-philic nano-sheet inorganic material, and poly(ether-b-amide) (PEBAX) for CO2 capture. MMM doped with 0.8 wt.% ImGO exhibits the best CO2 separation performance, which shows the…
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The Sieving Coefficient for Our Membranes is Time-Dependent (modeling post)
We’ve known for some time that the sieving coefficient of our membranes changes over time. The reason for this is that at the start of the separation the concentration just above the membrane is the same as the bulk concentration, but as more…
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ZO-1 Staining on ARPE-19 Cells grown on MgF2 nanomembranes
The following images are from ARPE-19 Cells cultured for 3 Weeks over here in Nottingham (thanks for help from Emilia Moradi, Victoria Ciampani, and Kevin Webb). MgF2 nanomembrane chips were positioned into a transwell insert and sealed using PDMS, a biocompatible polymer, creating…
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Hemocompatibility Studies
Overview – The purpose of this study was to perform in vitro hemocompatibility testing (in accordance with ISO standards) on material substrates that could come in contact with blood when incorporated into the final device design of a portable hemodialysis…
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Initial Stirred Cell Results for Benchmarking
Introduction: At the last meeting, I introduced the new stirred cell device acquired in Tom’s lab (here). I have expanded the study to observe changes in flux and concentration for each of the membranes used. Experiments: Each of the experiments was…
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First 4-Hour HD with 75-nm NPN
I assembled two 2-chip dialyzers using the thicker, 75-nm NPN membrane chips (10 mm long multichannel, 22 mm x 24 mm). The dialyzers were pumped full of IPA, to fill with fewer bubbles, then infused with PBS for at least…
Defining “Resolution” in our Sieving Model
In my earlier posts, as well as in Josh’s NPN paper and Tom’s ACS nano paper, we’ve talked a lot about the resolutions of nanoparticle separations. What we mean by it is how well the membrane is able to discriminate between…
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Biofiltration – The Stirred Cell Edition
Introduction: The lab purchased an Amicon 8010 Stirred Cell which has a 25mm diameter for membranes and holds 10mL of solution. The device works by placing the solution into the cell, pressurizing the system at 8-10 psi, and creates stirring via…
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