NOE analysis using dual injection DNP-NMR for studies of solvent–solute interactions at low concentrations

Abstract

Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) offers significant signal enhancement compared to conventional nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in measuring the nuclear Overhauser effect. Owing to this enhancement, DNP enables the quantitative analysis of solvent–solute interactions, which are typically challenging to assess using standard NMR techniques. However, current experimental setups generally require the use of samples with relatively high solute concentrations because of large dilution factors. This limits the studies on solvent–solute interactions for bio-related molecules, particularly those with low solubility. In such cases, the concentration of solute post-dilution often falls below the detection limits. Herein, we introduce a novel dual injection system designed to considerably increase the dilution factor, thereby enabling the use of samples with lower solute concentrations while maintaining detectable signal levels. The effectiveness of this system was demonstrated in experiments using trifluoroacetic acid at concentrations 50 times lower than those used in the conventional method.