Rapid acrylamide detection in drinking water using a coc-based microanalyzer

Overview

Acrylamide is an odorless, white, crystalline compound that forms readily during food processing and certain industrial activities. It hydrolyzes at temperatures above 120 °C into ammonia and organic fragments, and elevated levels in drinking water are regulated by the WHO guideline value of 0.5 µg/L. Conventional detection relies on chromatographic separation combined with spectrophotometric, electron capture, or mass spectrometry detectors, often preceded by liquid- or solid-phase extraction. These methods are accurate but costly, time-consuming, and unsuitable for routine or field-based monitoring.

This solution proposes a cyclic olefin copolymer (COC)-based continuous flow potentiometric microanalyzer that detects acrylamide indirectly by quantifying the ammonia released during its hydrolysis. Because one mole of acrylamide produces one mole of ammonia, the device can infer acrylamide concentration from the measured ammonia signal, enabling a faster and more affordable route to water quality assessment.

Technical specifications

Core technology:

• Continuous flow potentiometric microanalyzer fabricated from cyclic olefin copolymer (COC), a transparent, chemically resistant polymer suitable for microfluidic systems
• Two-stage architecture combining an ammonia trap module with a potentiometric ammonium ion-selective electrode (ISE) detection system
• Sample carrier stream mixes with a sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution to convert trapped ammonia into ammonium ions
• Ammonium ions flow to the detector, producing a measurable potential difference proportional to concentration
• Indirect detection of acrylamide through stoichiometric correlation with released ammonia

Key advantages over existing methods:

• Faster analysis time compared to chromatography and mass spectrometry workflows
• Lower cost by eliminating expensive detectors and complex extraction steps
• Compact microfluidic format suitable for portable or on-site deployment
• Continuous flow design enabling near real-time monitoring rather than batch processing

Technology readiness level

The microanalyzer concept has been described and proposed for development, with the underlying hydrolysis chemistry and potentiometric detection principle established. The next phase involves laboratory fabrication of the COC microanalyzer prototype, calibration of the ammonium ISE response, and validation of the one-to-one stoichiometric correlation between acrylamide and ammonia under controlled conditions. Performance benchmarking against WHO guideline concentrations (0.5 µg/L in drinking water) and comparison with standard chromatographic methods will be required to demonstrate analytical sensitivity, selectivity, and reliability before field deployment.