Use of Paper Microdevices in the Identification and Quantification of Cocaine in Seized Street Samples

The growing consumption of illicit drugs in Brazil is becoming increasingly problematic for society. It is therefore critical to develop technologies to combat drug trafficking that allow for rapid, non-invasive evaluation of drug samples. Microfluidics is a technology that manipulates and studies small amounts of fluids, using structures with dimensions from ten to hundreds of micrometers (microdevices). The main advantages of microfluidic approaches are its low cost, speed, and ability to provide results in loco. Here, paper microfluidics were developed to perform the modified Scott test to calculate the cocaine hydrochloride content in seized samples of cocaine (n = 30) and crack (n = 30). A smartphone with the Photometrix® app was used to construct a model for quantifying the samples. A factorial model was developed to optimize microfluidic analytical parameters such as spot size (6, 8 and 10 mm), reagent content (50, 75, and 100% cobalt thiocyanate II), cocaine hydrochloride concentration (4, 6 and 8 mg mL-1) and response time (or analyte detection; t = 0, 0.5 1, 12 and 24 h). After experimental planning, a diameter of ΜPADs = 8 mm - [Co(SCN)2] = 100% and a 1 h response time were identified as the best conditions. We observed that the cocaine hydrochloride concentration did not influence the model. A sample concentration of 15 mg mL-1 was used to quantify cocaine hydrochloride in street samples apprehended by the Forensic Police of Espírito Santo state (with n = 60). The quantification curve constructed to determine the cocaine hydrochloride concentration showed a determination coefficient, R2, of 0.98246 and RMSEC (root mean squares error calibration - mean square error of the calibration) of 0.39480, with a LOD and LOQ of 0.09 and 0.30 mg mL-1, respectively. For the crack samples, the cocaine hydrochloride concentrations ranged from 2.5 to 60.8 wt% with an average purity content of 21.3 ± 13.3 wt%. For the seized cocaine samples, variation in hydrochloride content from 1.2 to 22.6 wt% was observed with a mean percentage of 14.19 ± 6.92 wt%. Finally, chemometric tools such as principal component analysis were used to assess the similarity among the samples.