Nitrocellulose (NC) membrane was fabricated and tested for its potential use in various paper-based biosensors for use in point-of-care testing. However, contemporary technologies are complex, expensive, non-scalable, limited by conditions, and beset with potentially adverse effects on the environment. Herein, we proposed a simple, cost-effective, scalable technology to prepare nitrocellulose/cotton fiber (NC/CF) composite membranes. The NC/CF composite membranes with a diameter of 20 cm were fabricated in 15 min using papermaking technology, which contributes to scalability in the large-scale production of these composites. Compared with existing commercial NC membranes, the NC/CF composite membrane is characterized by small pore size (3.59 ± 0.19 μm), low flow rate (156 ± 55 s/40 mm), high dry strength (up to 4.04 MPa), and wet strength (up to 0.13 MPa), adjustable hydrophilic-hydrophobic (contact angles ranged from 29 ± 4.6 to 82.8 ± 2.4°), the good adsorption capacity of protein (up to 91.92 ± 0.07 μg). After lateral flow assays (LFAs) detection, the limit of detection is 1 nM, which is similar to commercial NC membrane (Sartorius CN 140). We envision the NC/CF composite membrane as a promising material for paper-based biosensors of point-of-care testing applications.

硝化纤维素 (NC) 膜经过制造和测试，以确定其在各种纸基生物传感器中的潜在用途，以用于即时测试。然而，当代技术复杂、昂贵、不可扩展、受条件限制，并且对环境有潜在的不利影响。在此，我们提出了一种简单、经济高效、可扩展的技术来制备硝化纤维/棉纤维（NC/CF）复合膜。利用造纸技术在15分钟内制造出直径为20厘米的NC/CF复合膜，这有助于大规模生产这些复合材料。与现有商用NC膜相比，NC/CF复合膜具有孔径小（3.59±0.19μm）、低流速（156±55s/40mm）、高干强度（高达4.04MPa）、湿强度高（可达0.13 MPa），亲疏水可调（接触角范围为29±4.6至82.8±2.4°），对蛋白质的吸附能力良好（可达91.92±0.07 μg）。经过侧流分析 (LFA) 检测后，检测限为 1 nM，与商业 NC 膜 (Sartorius CN 140) 相似。我们设想 NC/CF 复合膜作为用于即时测试应用的纸基生物传感器的有前景的材料。