Prototype micro gas chromatograph for breath biomarkers of respiratory disease

Progress toward a prototype MEMS gas chromatograph (muGC) designed for analyzing complex mixtures of volatile organic compounds (VOC) in breath is described. This muGC, named SPIRON, integrates a multi-stage preconcentrator/injector, a dual-microcolumn separation module, and a chemiresistor array detector with commercial minivalves and a minipump. Here, we describe results showing thermal control of all key system components and then present the rapid separation of two complex mixtures: one containing lung cancer biomarkers and the other containing tuberculosis biomarkers, both in backgrounds of 30 common breath VOCs. The fully assembled SPIRON muGC prototype is also presented.