Automated printing technology as a new tool for liquid sample preparation for micro x-ray fluorescence (MXRF)

The focus of this study was to explore automated printing technology (APT) as an alternative means to manual methods for nanoliter dried spot sample preparation of liquid samples for micro x-ray fluorescence analysis (MXRF). APT was used successfully to dispense 20 and 50 nl volumes of multielemental standard solutions onto AP1 and Kapton film substrates. Automated droplet deposition was rapid and minimized operator skill and human error in the sample preparation process. Dried spots prepared by APT were generally circular in shape and similar in appearance to those prepared by manual dried spot deposition techniques. Furthermore, multiple dried spots could be accurately and reproducibly deposited in the same precise location on the film substrate surface, allowing for increased sample loadings within the MXRF analysis area for higher elemental sensitivity. The characteristics of the substrate did affect the quality of dried spot formation, with irregularly shaped spots forming on the thicker, more hydrophobic Kapton film, especially with higher droplet mass loadings. Adverse effects of irregular spot formation on quantitative analysis could be easily minimized by increasing the MXRF analysis area to encompass the entire dried spot residue. Nanoliter dried spot sample preparation is useful not only for MXRF analysis of liquid samples, but can also be applied to other analytical techniques such as IR, Raman or UV/fluorescence spectroscopy, the applications of which can benefit from rapid sample throughput and matrix reduction. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.