Laser-induced fluorescence detection in high-throughput screening of heterogeneous catalysts and single cells analysis

The purpose of this research was to develop laser-induced fluorescence detection in high-throughput screening of heterogeneous catalysts and single cells analysis.; First, a high-throughput in situ screening approach for solid heterogeneous catalysts by laser-induced fluorescence imaging is introduced. We demonstrated LIFI has good detection performance and the spatial and temporal resolution needed for high-throughput screening of heterogeneous catalysts. We further applied the LIFI screening system for combinatorial discovery of heterogeneous catalysts and reaction condition optimization for naphthalene oxidation, as well as combinatorial study of catalytic performance of zeolites in acylation of aromatics.; In the second part of this dissertation, we used laser-induced native fluorescence coupled with capillary electrophoresis (LINF-CE) and microscope imaging to study the single cell degranulation. On the basis of good temporal correlation with events observed through an optical microscope, we have identified individual peaks in the fluorescence electropherograms as serotonin released from the granular core on contact with the surrounding fluid.