Organic solvent nanofiltration for microfluidic purification of poly(amidoamine) dendrimers

A nanofiltration method has been developed in a microfluidic format for the continuous-flow pressure-driven purification of half-generation poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers, a family of macromolecules characterized by highly branching structures radiating from a central core, without additional solvents or buffers. An organic solvent resistant nanofiltration membrane, STARMEM 122, has been fully integrated into a hard polymer microfluidic module by transmission laser welding. The membrane was initially characterized in a bench-top test fixture to determine the solvent permeance and percent rejection of a surrogate molecule, Rhodamine B, at lower than typical operating pressures (P < 7 bar). The microfluidic module then underwent similar testing at 1.4 bar with the surrogate and with the generation-0.5 PAMAM dendrimer. This approach to nanofiltration will readily interface to upstream microreactors.