Microfluidic lab-on-a-chip platforms for environmental monitoring

There is a global concern about the environmental impact of pollutants derived from their widespread use and subsequent persistence in the environment. In this context, attempts to develop novel methods/technologies for detection of pollutants in real-time have attracted much attention. The ever-increasing demand of remote autonomous field deployable analytical systems has become the driving force of microfluidic systems development. Microfluidic lab-on-a-chip (LOC) platforms excel, offering continuous tracking of chemical agents in an integrated miniaturised fashion. Herein, we focus on the latest developments in environmental LOC monitoring, devices and provide future perspectives to overcome the challenges that environmental monitoring face using printing technologies. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.