Claims
- 1-25. (canceled)
- 26. A method for testing electrical continuity, comprising the steps of:
(a) injecting a voltage pulse into a reference electrode; and (b) determining if there is a corresponding voltage pulse in a sensing electrode without drawing sufficient current in making the measurement to substantially vary the injected voltage.
- 27. A method of making a cast membrane reference electrode comprising the steps of:
(a) casting a membrane over a hole wherein said membrane is comprised of a hydrophilic polymer and a hydrophobic polymer; (b) filling the interior of the hole with a solution; (c) placing a wire into the solution; and (d) sealing the hole; wherein the cast membrane reference electrode results in a half-cell where the reference voltage is substantially independent of the concentration of ionic species in solution.
- 28-29. (canceled)
- 30. A cast membrane reference electrode comprising:
(a) a support containing a hole; (b) a membrane cast over the hole in the support wherein said membrane is comprised of a hydrophilic polymer and a hydrophobic polymer; (c) a solution in the interior of the hole in the support; and (d) a wire in the solution; wherein the cast membrane reference electrode results in a half-cell where the reference voltage is substantially independent of the concentration of ionic species in solution.
- 31. The cast membrane reference electrode of claim 30 wherein said hydrophobic polymer is polyvinyl chloride.
- 32. The cast membrane reference electrode of claim 30 wherein said hydrophilic polymer is polyethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol grafted onto a hydrophobic molecule, polypropylene glycol, or polypropylene glycol grafted onto a hydrophobic molecule.
- 33. The method of claim 27 wherein said hydrophobic polymer is polyvinyl chloride.
- 34. The method of claim 27 wherein said hydrophilic polymer is polyethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol grafted onto a hydrophobic molecule, polypropylene glycol, or polypropylene glycol grafted onto a hydrophobic molecule.
- 35. A method for detecting an organic drug in saliva or from a surface swab comprising the steps of:
(a) placing an ion selective electrode in a person's mouth, or taking saliva from a person's mouth and placing the saliva on an ion selective electrode, or squeezing a damp surface swab onto an ion selective electrode after wiping a surface suspected of being contaminated with an organic drug, or wiping a surface after wrapping a damp surface swab around an ion selective electrode; (b) ensuring that the ion selective electrode has electrical contact with a reference electrode; and (c) converting a voltage from the ion selective electrode to a quantitative drug concentration level.
PRIORITY CLAIM
[0001] The present application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/328,423 filed Oct. 12, 2001, entitled “Ion selective electrodes for direct organic drug analysis in saliva, sweat, and surface wipes” Ser. No. ______ (attorney docket number 83,326).
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60328423 |
Oct 2001 |
US |
Continuations (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
10237074 |
Sep 2002 |
US |
Child |
10833636 |
Apr 2004 |
US |