Advanced density-based methods for the characterization of materials, binding events, and kinetics

Abstract

Investigations of the densities of chemicals and materials bring valuable insights into the fundamental understanding of matter and processes.

A Magnetic Levitation System for Range/Sensitivity-Tunable Measurement of Density

“…Despite the several techniques proposed to determine material density, they suffer from significant drawbacks. Certain well-known density measurement methods, such as hydrometers, density-gradient columns, pycnometers, oscillating-tube densitometers, suspended microchannel resonators, and hydrostatic weighing balances, require large sample volumes and have limited precision, making them incompatible with certain sample types such as gels, pastes, and gums [16][17][18][19][20][21][22]. Additionally, the required equipment for some of these techniques is bulky, expensive, and challenging to use in certain environments.…”

“…It has several advantages over traditional methods, including portability, low cost, simple operation, and precise measurements through visual readout [8,[13][14][15][33][34][35][36]. MagLev has already found numerous applications in fields such as separation, self-assembly, forensics, quality control, and bioanalysis, and its simplicity makes it particularly suitable for use in resource-limited environments or as a point-of-care diagnostic tool [22,[37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44]. For the original MagLev method, an upright cylindrical container filled with a paramagnetic medium (e.g., an aqueous solution of manganese chloride, MnCl 2 ) is used as a density indicator after loading the test samples.…”