INVESTIGATION OF AN OPTICAL-FIBER PH SENSOR WITH THE MEMBRANE-BASED ON PHOSPHOLIPID COPOLYMER

Preliminary investigations on a newly developed copolymer having a pho spholipid polar group, 2-Methacryloyloxyethyl Phosphorylcholine (MPC) have been carried out. This copolymer has some characteristics similar to the biologically compatible cell membrane, and therefore it has po tential to improve the haemocompatibility of intravascular sensors. An optical fibre pH sensor with an MPC membrane has been produced and th e in vitro properties of this sensor were assessed in the buffer solut ions, both with and without protein. Within the physiological pH range , the sensor showed good linearity, satisfactory sensitivity and accep table response time. Furthermore, the performance of the sensor with M PC membrane was not significantly affected by the protein in the solut ions.