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Ramamoorthy RK, Yildirim E, Rodriguez-Ruiz I, Roblin P, Lacroix LM, Diaz A, Parmar R, Teychené S, Viau G. Sub-millisecond microfluidic mixers coupled to time-resolved in situ photonics to study ultra-fast reaction kinetics: the case of ultra-small gold nanoparticle synthesis. LAB ON A CHIP 2024; 24:327-338. [PMID: 38088259 DOI: 10.1039/d3lc00778b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2024]
Abstract
We report a continuous microreactor platform achieving sub-millisecond homogeneous reagent mixing (∼300 μs) for a time-resolved study on the synthesis of ultra-small gold nanoparticles (NPs). The microreactor (coupled with small angle X-ray scattering, UV-vis, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy for in situ and in operando characterizations), operates within mixing time frames below system characteristic times, providing a unique opportunity to deepen the comprehension of reaction and phase transition pathways with unprecedented details. The microreactor channel length can be approximated to a given reaction time when operated in continuous mode and steady state. As a result, the system can be statically investigated, eliminating technique-dependent probing time constraints and local inhomogeneities caused by mixing issues. We have studied Au(0) NP formation kinetics from Au(III) precursors complexed with oleylamine in organic media, using triisopropylsilane as a reducing agent. The existence of Au(III)/Au(I) prenucleation clusters and the formation of a transient Au(I) lamellar phase under certain conditions, before the onset of Au(0) formation, have been observed. Taking advantage of the high frequency time-resolved information, we propose and model two different reaction pathways associated with the presence or absence of the Au(I) lamellar phase. In both cases, non-classical pathways leading to the formation of NPs are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raj Kumar Ramamoorthy
- Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie des Nano-Objets UMR 5215 INSA, CNRS, UPS, Université de Toulouse, 135 avenue de Rangueil, F-31077 Toulouse cedex 4, France.
- Laboratoire de Génie Chimique, CNRS, INP, UPS, Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
- Fédération de Recherche FeRMAT, CNRS, INP, INSA, UPS, Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - Ezgi Yildirim
- Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie des Nano-Objets UMR 5215 INSA, CNRS, UPS, Université de Toulouse, 135 avenue de Rangueil, F-31077 Toulouse cedex 4, France.
| | - Isaac Rodriguez-Ruiz
- Laboratoire de Génie Chimique, CNRS, INP, UPS, Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
| | - Pierre Roblin
- Laboratoire de Génie Chimique, CNRS, INP, UPS, Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
| | - Lise-Marie Lacroix
- Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie des Nano-Objets UMR 5215 INSA, CNRS, UPS, Université de Toulouse, 135 avenue de Rangueil, F-31077 Toulouse cedex 4, France.
- Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), 103 boulevard Saint Michel, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Ana Diaz
- Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - Rohan Parmar
- Laboratoire de Génie Chimique, CNRS, INP, UPS, Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
| | - Sébastien Teychené
- Laboratoire de Génie Chimique, CNRS, INP, UPS, Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
| | - Guillaume Viau
- Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie des Nano-Objets UMR 5215 INSA, CNRS, UPS, Université de Toulouse, 135 avenue de Rangueil, F-31077 Toulouse cedex 4, France.
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Ghosh AB, Atta A. Mixing Enhancement of Newtonian Liquids in a Curvature Induced Split and Recombine Micromixer. Ind Eng Chem Res 2023. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.2c04131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/24/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Amritendu Bhuson Ghosh
- Multiscale Computational Fluid Dynamics (mCFD) Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur, West Bengal 721302, India
| | - Arnab Atta
- Multiscale Computational Fluid Dynamics (mCFD) Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur, West Bengal 721302, India
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Cai S, Erfle P, Dietzel A. A Digital Twin of the Coaxial Lamination Mixer for the Systematic Study of Mixing Performance and the Prediction of Precipitated Nanoparticle Properties. MICROMACHINES 2022; 13:2076. [PMID: 36557375 PMCID: PMC9780925 DOI: 10.3390/mi13122076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Revised: 11/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The synthesis of nanoparticles in microchannels promises the advantages of small size, uniform shape and narrow size distribution. However, only with insights into the mixing processes can the most suitable designs and operating conditions be systematically determined. Coaxial lamination mixers (CLM) built by 2-photon polymerization can operate long-term stable nanoparticle precipitation without fouling issues. Contact of the organic phase with the microchannel walls is prevented while mixing with the aqueous phase is intensified. A coaxial nozzle allows 3D hydrodynamic focusing followed by a sequence of stretch-and-fold units. By means of a digital twin based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and numerical evaluation of mixing progression, the influences of operation conditions are now studied in detail. As a measure for homogenization, the mixing index (MI) was extracted as a function of microchannel position for different operating parameters such as the total flow rate and the share of solvent flow. As an exemplary result, behind a third stretch-and-fold unit, practically perfect mixing (MI>0.9) is predicted at total flow rates between 50 µL/min and 400 µL/min and up to 20% solvent flow share. Based on MI values, the mixing time, which is decisive for the size and dispersity of the nanoparticles, can be determined. Under the conditions considered, it ranges from 5 ms to 54 ms. A good correlation between the predicted mixing time and nanoparticle properties, as experimentally observed in earlier work, could be confirmed. The digital twin combining CFD with the MI methodology can in the future be used to adjust the design of a CLM or other micromixers to the desired total flow rates and flow rate ratios and to provide valuable predictions for the mixing time and even the properties of nanoparticles produced by microfluidic antisolvent precipitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Songtao Cai
- Institute of Microtechnology, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38124 Braunschweig, Germany
- Center of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Peer Erfle
- Institute of Microtechnology, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38124 Braunschweig, Germany
- Center of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Andreas Dietzel
- Institute of Microtechnology, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38124 Braunschweig, Germany
- Center of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
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Chen L, Liu L, Xu L. Wide and continuous dynamic tuning of period, modulation depth and duty cycle of a laminar-flow-based microfluidic grating. LAB ON A CHIP 2021; 21:4118-4127. [PMID: 34498019 DOI: 10.1039/d1lc00474c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Flexible diffraction gratings that can be dynamically tuned in terms of both diffraction efficiency and diffraction angles are very important components for various applications, and fundamentally can be tuned through varying the modulation depth, duty cycle and grating period. However, dynamic and continuous tuning of a grating in all three aspects is difficult and has never been demonstrated hitherto. We propose and successfully fabricate a laminar-flow-based microfluidic grating in which all the three parameters can be dynamically tuned by simply varying flow rates into several liquid inlets. A 32-period liquid grating is generated by using ethanol and benzyl alcohol as alternate liquid lamellae. The total diffraction efficiency is tuned between 0 and 99%, and the maximum diffraction efficiency of the first order is ∼27%. The duty cycle of the grating is dynamically tuned from 7.6% to 91.5%. The grating period is compressed from more than 22 μm to less than 4 μm, leading to tuning of the first order diffraction angle from 1.7° to 9.2°.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lin Chen
- Key Lab for Micro and Nanophotonic Structures (Ministry of Education, China), Department of Optical Science and Engineering, School of Information Science and Engineering, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
| | - Liying Liu
- Key Lab for Micro and Nanophotonic Structures (Ministry of Education, China), Department of Optical Science and Engineering, School of Information Science and Engineering, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
| | - Lei Xu
- Key Lab for Micro and Nanophotonic Structures (Ministry of Education, China), Department of Optical Science and Engineering, School of Information Science and Engineering, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
- Department of Physics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
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Okuducu MB, Aral MM. Toward the Next Generation of Passive Micromixers: A Novel 3-D Design Approach. MICROMACHINES 2021; 12:mi12040372. [PMID: 33808487 PMCID: PMC8066093 DOI: 10.3390/mi12040372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2021] [Revised: 03/19/2021] [Accepted: 03/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Passive micromixers are miniaturized instruments that are used to mix fluids in microfluidic systems. In microchannels, combination of laminar flows and small diffusion constants of mixing liquids produce a difficult mixing environment. In particular, in very low Reynolds number flows, e.g., Re < 10, diffusive mixing cannot be promoted unless a large interfacial area is formed between the fluids to be mixed. Therefore, the mixing distance increases substantially due to a slow diffusion process that governs fluid mixing. In this article, a novel 3-D passive micromixer design is developed to improve fluid mixing over a short distance. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations are used to investigate the performance of the micromixer numerically. The circular-shaped fluid overlapping (CSFO) micromixer design proposed is examined in several fluid flow, diffusivity, and injection conditions. The outcomes show that the CSFO geometry develops a large interfacial area between the fluid bodies. Thus, fluid mixing is accelerated in vertical and/or horizontal directions depending on the injection type applied. For the smallest molecular diffusion constant tested, the CSFO micromixer design provides more than 90% mixing efficiency in a distance between 260 and 470 µm. The maximum pressure drop in the micromixer is found to be less than 1.4 kPa in the highest flow conditioned examined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahmut Burak Okuducu
- School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
- Correspondence:
| | - Mustafa M. Aral
- Design and Simulation Technologies Inc., Istanbul 34860, Turkey;
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Hossain S, Tayeb NT, Islam F, Kaseem M, Bui P, Bhuiya M, Aslam M, Kim KY. Enhancement of Mixing Performance of Two-Layer Crossing Micromixer through Surrogate-Based Optimization. MICROMACHINES 2021; 12:mi12020211. [PMID: 33669613 PMCID: PMC7922677 DOI: 10.3390/mi12020211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2021] [Revised: 02/08/2021] [Accepted: 02/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Optimum configuration of a micromixer with two-layer crossing microstructure was performed using mixing analysis, surrogate modeling, along with an optimization algorithm. Mixing performance was used to determine the optimum designs at Reynolds number 40. A surrogate modeling method based on a radial basis neural network (RBNN) was used to approximate the value of the objective function. The optimization study was carried out with three design variables; viz., the ratio of the main channel thickness to the pitch length (H/PI), the ratio of the thickness of the diagonal channel to the pitch length (W/PI), and the ratio of the depth of the channel to the pitch length (d/PI). Through a primary parametric study, the design space was constrained. The design points surrounded by the design constraints were chosen using a well-known technique called Latin hypercube sampling (LHS). The optimal design confirmed a 32.0% enhancement of the mixing index as compared to the reference design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shakhawat Hossain
- Department of Industrial and Production Engineering, Jashore University of Science and Technology, Jashore 7408, Bangladesh
- Correspondence: (S.H.); (K.-Y.K.); Tel.: +880-8810308-526191 (S.H.); +82-32-872-3096 (K.-Y.K.); Fax: +82-32-868-1716 (K.-Y.K.)
| | - Nass Toufiq Tayeb
- Gas Turbine Joint Research Team, University of Djelfa, Djelfa 17000, Algeria;
| | - Farzana Islam
- Department of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials Engineering, Sejong University, Seoul 05006, Korea; (F.I.); (M.K.)
| | - Mosab Kaseem
- Department of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials Engineering, Sejong University, Seoul 05006, Korea; (F.I.); (M.K.)
| | - P.D.H. Bui
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK 74104, USA;
| | - M.M.K. Bhuiya
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Chittagong University of Engineering & Technology (CUET), Chittagong 4349, Bangladesh;
| | - Muhammad Aslam
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Lahore Campus, COMSATS University Islamabad (CUI), Lahore 53720, Pakistan;
| | - Kwang-Yong Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, 100 Inha-ro, Michuhol-gu, Incheon 22212, Korea
- Correspondence: (S.H.); (K.-Y.K.); Tel.: +880-8810308-526191 (S.H.); +82-32-872-3096 (K.-Y.K.); Fax: +82-32-868-1716 (K.-Y.K.)
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7
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Wang Y, Zhang Y, Qiao Z, Wang W. A 3D Printed Jet Mixer for Centrifugal Microfluidic Platforms. MICROMACHINES 2020; 11:mi11070695. [PMID: 32709009 PMCID: PMC7407664 DOI: 10.3390/mi11070695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2020] [Revised: 07/14/2020] [Accepted: 07/14/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Homogeneous mixing of microscopic volume fluids at low Reynolds number is of great significance for a wide range of chemical, biological, and medical applications. An efficient jet mixer with arrays of micronozzles was designed and fabricated using additive manufacturing (three-dimensional (3D) printing) technology for applications in centrifugal microfluidic platforms. The contact surface of miscible liquids was enhanced significantly by impinging plumes from two opposite arrays of micronozzles to improve mixing performance. The mixing efficiency was evaluated and compared with the commonly used Y-shaped micromixer. Effective mixing in the jet mixer was achieved within a very short timescale (3s). This 3D printed jet mixer has great potential to be implemented in applications by being incorporated into multifarious 3D printing devices in microfluidic platforms.
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Fuwad A, Hossain S, Ryu H, Ansari MA, Khan MSI, Kim KY, Jeon TJ, Kim SM. Numerical and Experimental Study on Mixing in Chaotic Micromixers with Crossing Structures. Chem Eng Technol 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/ceat.201900523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed Fuwad
- Inha University Department of Mechanical Engineering 22212 Incheon Korea
| | - Shakhawat Hossain
- Sejong University Department of Unmanned Vehicle Engineering 05006 Seoul Korea
| | - Hyunil Ryu
- Inha University Department of Biological Engineering 22212 Incheon Korea
| | - Mubashshir Ahmad Ansari
- Aligarh Muslim University Department of Mechanical Engineering Zakir Husain College of Engineering and Technology 202002 Aligarh India
| | - Muhammad Saiful Islam Khan
- Korea Food Research Institute Food Safety and Hygiene Research Division 55365 Wanju-gun Jeollabuk-do Korea
| | - Kwang-Yong Kim
- Inha University Department of Mechanical Engineering 22212 Incheon Korea
| | - Tae-Joon Jeon
- Inha University Department of Biological Engineering 22212 Incheon Korea
| | - Sun Min Kim
- Inha University Department of Mechanical Engineering 22212 Incheon Korea
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10
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Hossain S, Fuwad A, Kim KY, Jeon TJ, Kim SM. Investigation of Mixing Performance of Two-Dimensional Micromixer Using Tesla Structures with Different Shapes of Obstacles. Ind Eng Chem Res 2020. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.9b06741] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Shakhawat Hossain
- Department of Unmanned Vehicle Engineering, Sejong University, Seoul 05006, Korea
| | - Ahmed Fuwad
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 22212, Korea
| | - Kwang-Yong Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 22212, Korea
| | - Tae-Joon Jeon
- Department of Biological Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 22212, Korea
| | - Sun Min Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 22212, Korea
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11
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CFD modeling of immiscible liquids turbulent dispersion in Kenics static mixers: Focusing on droplet behavior. Chin J Chem Eng 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cjche.2019.07.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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Bornemann M, Kern S, Jurtz N, Thiede T, Kraume M, Maiwald M. Design and Validation of an Additively Manufactured Flow Cell–Static Mixer Combination for Inline NMR Spectroscopy. Ind Eng Chem Res 2019. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.9b03746] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Martin Bornemann
- Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM), Richard-Willstätter-Str. 11, 12489 Berlin, Germany
- Technische Universität Berlin, Fachgebiet Verfahrenstechnik, FH 6-1, Fraunhofer Straße 33−36, 10587 Berlin, Germany
| | - Simon Kern
- Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM), Richard-Willstätter-Str. 11, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Nico Jurtz
- Technische Universität Berlin, Fachgebiet Verfahrenstechnik, FH 6-1, Fraunhofer Straße 33−36, 10587 Berlin, Germany
| | - Tobias Thiede
- Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM), Unter den Eichen 87, 12205 Berlin, Germany
| | - Matthias Kraume
- Technische Universität Berlin, Fachgebiet Verfahrenstechnik, FH 6-1, Fraunhofer Straße 33−36, 10587 Berlin, Germany
| | - Michael Maiwald
- Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM), Richard-Willstätter-Str. 11, 12489 Berlin, Germany
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Zare P, Talebi S. Numerical simulation of geometry effect on mixing performance in L-shaped micromixers. CHEM ENG COMMUN 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/00986445.2019.1613228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Parvaneh Zare
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran
| | - Shahram Talebi
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran
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Liu Z, Zhu J, Peng C, Wakihara T, Okubo T. Continuous flow synthesis of ordered porous materials: from zeolites to metal–organic frameworks and mesoporous silica. REACT CHEM ENG 2019. [DOI: 10.1039/c9re00142e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Herein we review the concepts, challenges and recent developments on the continuous flow synthesis of ordered porous materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhendong Liu
- Department of Chemical System Engineering
- The University of Tokyo
- Tokyo
- Japan
| | - Jie Zhu
- Department of Chemical System Engineering
- The University of Tokyo
- Tokyo
- Japan
| | - Ce Peng
- Department of Chemical System Engineering
- The University of Tokyo
- Tokyo
- Japan
| | - Toru Wakihara
- Department of Chemical System Engineering
- The University of Tokyo
- Tokyo
- Japan
| | - Tatsuya Okubo
- Department of Chemical System Engineering
- The University of Tokyo
- Tokyo
- Japan
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Numerical and Experimental Study on Mixing Performances of Simple and Vortex Micro T-Mixers. MICROMACHINES 2018; 9:mi9050204. [PMID: 30424137 PMCID: PMC6187307 DOI: 10.3390/mi9050204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2018] [Revised: 04/18/2018] [Accepted: 04/25/2018] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Vortex flow increases the interface area of fluid streams by stretching along with providing continuous stirring action to the fluids in micromixers. In this study, experimental and numerical analyses on a design of micromixer that creates vortex flow were carried out, and the mixing performance was compared with a simple micro T-mixer. In the vortex micro T-mixer, the height of the inlet channels is half of the height of the main mixing channel. The inlet channel connects to the main mixing channel (micromixer) at the one end at an offset position in a fashion that creates vortex flow. In the simple micro T-mixer, the height of the inlet channels is equal to the height of the channel after connection (main mixing channel). Mixing of fluids and flow field have been analyzed for Reynolds numbers in a range from 1–80. The study has been further extended to planar serpentine microchannels, which were combined with a simple and a vortex T-junction, to evaluate and verify their mixing performances. The mixing performance of the vortex T-mixer is higher than the simple T-mixer and significantly increases with the Reynolds number. The design is promising for efficiently increasing mixing simply at the T-junction and can be applied to all micromixers.
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Javaid MU, Cheema TA, Park CW. Analysis of Passive Mixing in a Serpentine Microchannel with Sinusoidal Side Walls. MICROMACHINES 2017; 9:E8. [PMID: 30393285 PMCID: PMC6187489 DOI: 10.3390/mi9010008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2017] [Revised: 12/22/2017] [Accepted: 12/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Sample mixing is difficult in microfluidic devices because of laminar flow. Micromixers are designed to ensure the optimal use of miniaturized devices. The present study aims to design a chaotic-advection-based passive micromixer with enhanced mixing efficiency. A serpentine-shaped microchannel with sinusoidal side walls was designed, and three cases, with amplitude to wavelength (A/λ) ratios of 0.1, 0.15, and 0.2 were investigated. Numerical simulations were conducted using the Navier⁻Stokes equations, to determine the flow field. The flow was then coupled with the convection⁻diffusion equation to obtain the species concentration distribution. The mixing performance of sinusoidal walled channels was compared with that of a simple serpentine channel for Reynolds numbers ranging from 0.1 to 50. Secondary flows were observed at high Reynolds numbers that mixed the fluid streams. These flows were dominant in the proposed sinusoidal walled channels, thereby showing better mixing performance than the simple serpentine channel at similar or less mixing cost. Higher mixing efficiency was obtained by increasing the A/λ ratio.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Usman Javaid
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Kyungpook National University, 80 Daehak-ro, Bukgu, Daegu 41566, Korea.
| | - Taqi Ahmad Cheema
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology, Topi 23460, Khyber Pakhtoon Khwa, Pakistan.
| | - Cheol Woo Park
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Kyungpook National University, 80 Daehak-ro, Bukgu, Daegu 41566, Korea.
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Hossain S, Kim KY. Optimization of a Micromixer with Two-Layer Serpentine Crossing Channels at Multiple Reynolds Numbers. Chem Eng Technol 2017. [DOI: 10.1002/ceat.201700437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Shakhawat Hossain
- Inha University; Department of Mechanical Engineering; 100 Inha-Ro, Nam-Gu 22212 Incheon Republic of Korea
| | - Kwang-Yong Kim
- Inha University; Department of Mechanical Engineering; 100 Inha-Ro, Nam-Gu 22212 Incheon Republic of Korea
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Mierka O, Munir M, Spille C, Timmermann J, Schlüter M, Turek S. Reactive Liquid-Flow Simulation of Micromixers Based on Grid Deformation Techniques. Chem Eng Technol 2017. [DOI: 10.1002/ceat.201600686] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Otto Mierka
- Dortmund University of Technology; Faculty of Mathematics; Chair of Applied Mathematics and Numerics; Vogelpothsweg 87 44227 Dortmund Germany
| | - Maimoona Munir
- Dortmund University of Technology; Faculty of Mathematics; Chair of Applied Mathematics and Numerics; Vogelpothsweg 87 44227 Dortmund Germany
| | - Claas Spille
- Hamburg University of Technology; Institute of Multiphase Flows; Eissendorfer Strasse 38 21073 Hamburg Germany
| | - Jens Timmermann
- Hamburg University of Technology; Institute of Multiphase Flows; Eissendorfer Strasse 38 21073 Hamburg Germany
| | - Michael Schlüter
- Hamburg University of Technology; Institute of Multiphase Flows; Eissendorfer Strasse 38 21073 Hamburg Germany
| | - Stefan Turek
- Dortmund University of Technology; Faculty of Mathematics; Chair of Applied Mathematics and Numerics; Vogelpothsweg 87 44227 Dortmund Germany
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Hossain S, Afzal A, Kim KY. Shape Optimization of a Three-Dimensional Serpentine Split-and-Recombine Micromixer. CHEM ENG COMMUN 2017. [DOI: 10.1080/00986445.2017.1289185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Shakhawat Hossain
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Arshad Afzal
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Kwang-Yong Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon, Republic of Korea
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Woldemariam M, Filimonov R, Purtonen T, Sorvari J, Koiranen T, Eskelinen H. Mixing performance evaluation of additive manufactured milli-scale reactors. Chem Eng Sci 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ces.2016.05.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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21
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Keßler S, Schmid F, Drese K. Modeling size controlled nanoparticle precipitation with the co-solvency method by spinodal decomposition. SOFT MATTER 2016; 12:7231-40. [PMID: 27502026 DOI: 10.1039/c6sm01198e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
The co-solvency method is a method for the size controlled preparation of nanoparticles like polymersomes, where a poor co-solvent is mixed into a homogeneous copolymer solution to trigger precipitation of the polymer. The size of the resulting particles is determined by the rate of co-solvent addition. We use the Cahn-Hilliard equation with a Flory-Huggins free energy model to describe the precipitation of a polymer under changing solvent quality by applying a time dependent Flory-Huggins interaction parameter. The analysis focuses on the characteristic size R of polymer aggregates that form during the initial spinodal decomposition stage, and especially on how R depends on the rate s of solvent quality change. Both numerical results and a perturbation analysis predict a power law dependence R∼s(-⅙), which is in agreement with power laws for the final particle sizes that have been reported from experiments and molecular dynamics simulations. Hence, our model results suggest that the nanoparticle size in size-controlled precipitation is essentially determined during the spinodal decomposition stage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Keßler
- Fraunhofer ICT-IMM, Carl-Zeiss-Str. 18-20, 55129 Mainz, Germany
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22
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Chen X, Shen J. Design and Simulation of a Chaotic Micromixer with Diamond-Like Micropillar Based on Artificial Neural Network. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL REACTOR ENGINEERING 2016. [DOI: 10.1515/ijcre-2016-0039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Microfluidic mixing is an essential part of the process of microfluidic chip technology in the analysis, and micromixer has also become the key components of microfluidic chip analysis system. For DNA hybridization, protein folding and enzyme reaction, some biochemical processes need to react quickly to achieve on analysis and research has the vital significance. A simple, rapid and low-cost passive micromixer is presented in this paper. In order to improve the mixing efficiency of the species, the concept of a splitting and recombination (SAR) was used to shorten the mixing time of the species. This study simulated the species mixing in a micromixer with traditional T-type micromixer and diamond-like micropillar in laminar flow state through COMSOL multiphysics 3.5a to computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Linking artificial neural network (ANN) and CFD was used to optimize the diamond-like micropillar. Finally, simulation results proved that the micromixer with SAR diamond-like concept achieves a high-efficiency mixing than T-type micromixer. Numerical results also show that the mixing efficiency of the SAR micromixer with diamond-like micropillar can be up to 99 %, and that efficiency can reach rapidly 90 % in a short channel distance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xueye Chen
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Automation, Liaoning University of technology, Jinzhou 121001, China
| | - Jienan Shen
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Automation, Liaoning University of technology, Jinzhou 121001, China
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23
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Hossain S, Kim KY. Parametric investigation on mixing in a micromixer with two-layer crossing channels. SPRINGERPLUS 2016; 5:794. [PMID: 27390635 PMCID: PMC4916123 DOI: 10.1186/s40064-016-2477-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2016] [Accepted: 05/30/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
This work presents a parametric investigation on flow and mixing in a chaotic micromixer consisting of two-layer crossing channels proposed by Xia et al. (Lab Chip 5: 748–755, 2005). The flow and mixing performance were numerically analyzed using commercially available software ANSYS CFX-15.0, which solves the Navier–Stokes and mass conservation equations with a diffusion–convection model in a Reynolds number range from 0.2 to 40. A mixing index based on the variance of the mass fraction of the mixture was employed to evaluate the mixing performance of the micromixer. The flow structure in the channel was also investigated to identify the relationship with mixing performance. The mixing performance and pressure-drop were evaluated with two dimensionless geometric parameters, i.e., ratios of the sub-channel width to the main channel width and the channels depth to the main channel width. The results revealed that the mixing index at the exit of the micromixer increases with increase in the channel depth-to-width ratio, but decreases with increase in the sub-channel width to main channel width ratio. And, it was found that the mixing index could be increased up to 0.90 with variations of the geometric parameters at Re = 0.2, and the pressure drop was very sensitive to the geometric parameters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shakhawat Hossain
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon, 402-751 Republic of Korea
| | - Kwang-Yong Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon, 402-751 Republic of Korea
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24
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Asano S, Maki T, Mae K. Evaluation of mixing profiles for a new micromixer design strategy. AIChE J 2015. [DOI: 10.1002/aic.15082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Shusaku Asano
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku Katsura, Nishikyo-ku; Kyoto 615-8510 Japan
| | - Taisuke Maki
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku Katsura, Nishikyo-ku; Kyoto 615-8510 Japan
| | - Kazuhiro Mae
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku Katsura, Nishikyo-ku; Kyoto 615-8510 Japan
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25
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Hossain S, Kim KY. Mixing analysis in a three-dimensional serpentine split-and-recombine micromixer. Chem Eng Res Des 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cherd.2015.05.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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26
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Mixing Performance of a Serpentine Micromixer with Non-Aligned Inputs. MICROMACHINES 2015. [DOI: 10.3390/mi6070842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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27
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Mixing Analysis of Passive Micromixer with Unbalanced Three-Split Rhombic Sub-Channels. MICROMACHINES 2014. [DOI: 10.3390/mi5040913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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28
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Alam A, Afzal A, Kim KY. Mixing performance of a planar micromixer with circular obstructions in a curved microchannel. Chem Eng Res Des 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cherd.2013.09.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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29
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Bansode A, Tidona B, von Rohr PR, Urakawa A. Impact of K and Ba promoters on CO2hydrogenation over Cu/Al2O3catalysts at high pressure. Catal Sci Technol 2013. [DOI: 10.1039/c2cy20604h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 109] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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30
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Tonhauser C, Natalello A, Löwe H, Frey H. Microflow Technology in Polymer Synthesis. Macromolecules 2012. [DOI: 10.1021/ma301671x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 154] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Christoph Tonhauser
- Institute of Organic Chemistry,
Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Duesbergweg 10-14 Johannes Gutenberg-University (JGU), D-55099 Mainz,
Germany
| | - Adrian Natalello
- Institute of Organic Chemistry,
Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Duesbergweg 10-14 Johannes Gutenberg-University (JGU), D-55099 Mainz,
Germany
- Graduate School Materials Science in Mainz, Staudingerweg 9, D-55128
Mainz, Germany
| | - Holger Löwe
- Institute of Organic Chemistry,
Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Duesbergweg 10-14 Johannes Gutenberg-University (JGU), D-55099 Mainz,
Germany
- Institut für Mikrotechnik Mainz GmbH, Carl-Zeiss-Strasse 18-22, 55129
Mainz, Germany
| | - Holger Frey
- Institute of Organic Chemistry,
Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Duesbergweg 10-14 Johannes Gutenberg-University (JGU), D-55099 Mainz,
Germany
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31
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Capretto L, Cheng W, Carugo D, Katsamenis OL, Hill M, Zhang X. Mechanism of co-nanoprecipitation of organic actives and block copolymers in a microfluidic environment. NANOTECHNOLOGY 2012; 23:375602. [PMID: 22922560 DOI: 10.1088/0957-4484/23/37/375602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Microreactors have been shown to be a powerful tool for the production of nanoparticles (NPs); however, there is still a lack of understanding of the role that the microfluidic environment plays in directing the nanoprecipitation process. Here we investigate the mechanism of nanoprecipitation of block copolymer stabilized organic NPs using a microfluidic-based reactor in combination with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelling of the microfluidic implementation. The latter also accounts for the complex interplay between molecular and hydrodynamic phenomena during the nanoprecipitation process, in order to understand the hydrodynamics and its influence on the NP formation process. It is demonstrated that the competitive reactions result in the formation of two types of NPs, i.e., either with or without loading organic actives. The obtained results are interpreted by taking into consideration a new parameter representing the mismatching between the aggregations of the polymers and actives, which plays a decisive role in determining the size and polydispersity of the prepared hybrid NPs. These results expand the current understanding of the co-nanoprecipitation mechanism of active and block copolymer stabilizer, and on the role exerted by the microfluidic environment, giving information that could be translated to the emerging fields of microfluidic formation of NPs and nanomedicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Capretto
- Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
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33
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Yang RJ, Hou HH, Wang YN, Lin CH, Fu LM. A hydrodynamic focusing microchannel based on micro-weir shear lift force. BIOMICROFLUIDICS 2012; 6:34110. [PMID: 23919100 PMCID: PMC3427323 DOI: 10.1063/1.4739073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2012] [Accepted: 07/10/2012] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
A novel microflow cytometer is proposed in which the particles are focused in the horizontal and vertical directions by means of the Saffman shear lift force generated within a micro-weir microchannel. The proposed device is fabricated on stress-relieved glass substrates and is characterized both numerically and experimentally using fluorescent particles with diameters of 5 μm and 10 μm, respectively. The numerical results show that the micro-weir structures confine the particle stream to the center of the microchannel without the need for a shear flow. Moreover, the experimental results show that the particles emerging from the micro-weir microchannel pass through the detection region in a one-by-one fashion. The focusing effect of the micro-weir microchannel is quantified by computing the normalized variance of the optical detection signal intensity. It is shown that the focusing performance of the micro-weir structure is equal to 99.76% and 99.57% for the 5-μm and 10-μm beads, respectively. Overall, the results presented in this study confirm that the proposed microcytometer enables the reliable sorting and counting of particles with different diameters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruey-Jen Yang
- Department of Engineering Science, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101, Taiwan
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34
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Capretto L, Mazzitelli S, Colombo G, Piva R, Penolazzi L, Vecchiatini R, Zhang X, Nastruzzi C. Production of polymeric micelles by microfluidic technology for combined drug delivery: application to osteogenic differentiation of human periodontal ligament mesenchymal stem cells (hPDLSCs). Int J Pharm 2012; 440:195-206. [PMID: 22884778 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2012.07.057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2012] [Revised: 06/20/2012] [Accepted: 07/23/2012] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The current paper reports the production of polymeric micelles (PMs), based on pluronic block-copolymers, as drug carriers, precisely controlling the cellular delivery of drugs with various physico-chemical characteristics. PMs were produced with a microfluidic platform to exploit further control on the size characteristic of the PMs. PMs were designed for the co-delivery of dexamethasone (Dex) and ascorbyl-palmitate (AP) to in vitro cultured human periodontal ligament mesenchymal stem cells (hPDLSCs) for the combined induction of osteogenic differentiation. Mixtures of block-copolymers and drugs in organic, water miscible solvent, were conveniently converted in PMs within microfluidic channel leveraging the fast mixing at the microscale. Our results demonstrated that the drugs can be efficiently co-encapsulated in PMs and that different production parameters can be adjusted in order to modulate the PM characteristics. The comparative analysis of PM produced by microfluidic and conventional procedures confirmed that the use of microfluidics platforms allowed the production of PMs in a robust manner with improved controllability, reproducibility, smaller size and polydispersity. Finally, the analysis of the effect of PMs, containing Dex and AP, on the osteogenic differentiation of hPDLSCs is reported. The data demonstrated the effectiveness and safety of PM treatment on hPDLSC. In conclusion, this report indicates that microfluidic approach represents an innovative and useful method for PM controlled preparation, warrant further evaluation as general methodology for the production of colloidal systems for the simultaneous drug delivery.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Capretto
- Engineering Sciences, Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, University of Southampton, University Road, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK
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35
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Méndez-Portillo LS, Heniche M, Dubois C, Tanguy PA. Numerical investigation of the hydrodynamics of split-and-recombination and multilamination microreactors. AIChE J 2012. [DOI: 10.1002/aic.13858] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lionel S. Méndez-Portillo
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; École Polytechnique de Montréal; P.O. Box 6079, Station Centre-Ville; Montreal; QC; Canada; H3C 3A7
| | - Mourad Heniche
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; École Polytechnique de Montréal; P.O. Box 6079, Station Centre-Ville; Montreal; QC; Canada; H3C 3A7
| | - Charles Dubois
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; École Polytechnique de Montréal; P.O. Box 6079, Station Centre-Ville; Montreal; QC; Canada; H3C 3A7
| | - Philippe A. Tanguy
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; École Polytechnique de Montréal; P.O. Box 6079, Station Centre-Ville; Montreal; QC; Canada; H3C 3A7
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36
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37
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38
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Sheu TS, Chen SJ, Chen JJ. Mixing of a split and recombine micromixer with tapered curved microchannels. Chem Eng Sci 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ces.2011.12.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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39
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Méndez-Portillo LS, Fradette L, Dubois C, Tanguy PA. Characterization of the Hydrodynamics and Mixing Performance of a Split-and-Recombination (SAR) Prototype Microreactor and a Multilamination Commercial Microreactor. Ind Eng Chem Res 2011. [DOI: 10.1021/ie102410b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lionel S. Méndez-Portillo
- Department of Chemical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, P.O. Box 6079, Station Centre-Ville, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3C 3A7
| | - Louis Fradette
- Department of Chemical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, P.O. Box 6079, Station Centre-Ville, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3C 3A7
| | - Charles Dubois
- Department of Chemical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, P.O. Box 6079, Station Centre-Ville, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3C 3A7
| | - Philippe A. Tanguy
- Department of Chemical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, P.O. Box 6079, Station Centre-Ville, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3C 3A7
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40
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41
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Capretto L, Carugo D, Cheng W, Hill M, Zhang X. Continuous-flow production of polymeric micelles in microreactors: experimental and computational analysis. J Colloid Interface Sci 2011; 357:243-51. [PMID: 21353232 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2011.01.085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2010] [Revised: 01/22/2011] [Accepted: 01/25/2011] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
We report the development of a microfluidic-based process for the production of polymeric micelles (PMs) in continuous-flow microreactors where Pluronic® tri-block copolymer is used as model polymeric biomaterial relating to drug delivery applications. A flow focusing configuration is used enabling a controllable, and fast mixing process to assist the formation of polymeric micelles through nanoprecipitation which is triggered by a solvent exchange process when organic solutions of the polymer mixed with a non-solvent. We experientially investigate the effect of polymer concentration, flow rate ratio and microreactor dimension on the PMs size characteristics. The mixing process within the microfluidic reactors is further analyzed by computational modeling in order to understand the hydrodynamic process and its implication for the polymeric micelles formation process. The results obtained show that besides the effect of the flow rate ratio, the chemical environment in which the aggregation takes place plays an important role in determining the dimensional characteristics of the produced polymeric micelles. It is demonstrated that microfluidic reactors provide a useful platform for the continuous-flow production of polymeric micelles with improved controllability, reproducibility, and homogeneity of the size characteristics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Capretto
- Bioengineering Group, School of Engineering Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, United Kingdom
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Abstract
Micromixing is a crucial process within microfluidic systems such as micro total analysis systems (μTAS). A state-of-art review on microstructured mixing devices and their mixing phenomena is given. The review first presents an overview of the characteristics of fluidic behavior at the microscale and their implications in microfluidic mixing processes. According to the two basic principles exploited to induce mixing at the microscale, micromixers are generally classified as being passive or active. Passive mixers solely rely on pumping energy, whereas active mixers rely on an external energy source to achieve mixing. Typical types of passive micromixers are discussed, including T- or Y-shaped, parallel lamination, sequential, focusing enhanced mixers, and droplet micromixers. Examples of active mixers using external forces such as pressure field, electrokinetic, dielectrophoretic, electrowetting, magneto-hydrodynamic, and ultrasound to assist mixing are presented. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of mixing in a microfluidic environment are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Capretto
- School of Engineering Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
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43
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Hossain S, Kim KY. Numerical Study on Mixing Performance of Straight Groove Micromixers. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010. [DOI: 10.5293/ijfms.2010.3.3.227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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44
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Zaborenko N, Murphy ER, Kralj JG, Jensen KF. Synthesis and Kinetics of Highly Energetic Intermediates by Micromixers: Direct Multistep Synthesis of Sodium Nitrotetrazolate. Ind Eng Chem Res 2010. [DOI: 10.1021/ie100263p] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nikolay Zaborenko
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139
| | - Edward R. Murphy
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139
| | - Jason G. Kralj
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139
| | - Klavs F. Jensen
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139
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45
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Ansari MA, Kim KY. A numerical study of mixing in a microchannel with circular mixing chambers. AIChE J 2009. [DOI: 10.1002/aic.11833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
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46
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sreenath K.
- Chemical Engineering Department, I.I.T. Madras, Chennai-600036, India
| | - Pushpavanam S.
- Chemical Engineering Department, I.I.T. Madras, Chennai-600036, India
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47
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Hou HH, Tsai CH, Fu LM, Yang RJ. Experimental and numerical investigation into micro-flow cytometer with 3-D hydrodynamic focusing effect and micro-weir structure. Electrophoresis 2009; 30:2507-15. [DOI: 10.1002/elps.200900012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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48
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Cieslicki K, Piechna A. Investigations of mixing process in microfluidic manifold designed according to biomimetic rule. LAB ON A CHIP 2009; 9:726-732. [PMID: 19224024 DOI: 10.1039/b811005k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
The paper is focused on the mechanism of mixing process in a manifold which mimics the geometrical properties of vascular systems. The relationship governing the optimum ratio between the diameters of the parent and daughter branches in vascular systems was first discovered by Murray using the principle of minimum work. However, in contrast to biological vascular networks, which are composed of circular pipes, microfluidic manifolds are fabricated using a range of processes (photolithography, wet or dry etching, surface micromachining), which result in channels of rectangular or trapezoidal sections and constant depth throughout the device. The paper focuses on constant-depth rectangular channels often employed in lab-on-a-chip systems and provides comprehensive numerical studies of mixing in such geometry. It also presents simplified analytical estimation on how the coefficient of mixing depends on the number of generations and Reynolds number. The main goal of the paper is to describe the concept of a mixer which provides almost perfect mixing at the outlet regardless of the value of Re and for a minimal number of manifold's generations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krzysztof Cieslicki
- Laboratory of Bioflows, Institute of Automatic Control and Robotics, Warsaw University of Technology, Poland
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49
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Lee J, Kwon S. Mixing efficiency of a multilamination micromixer with consecutive recirculation zones. Chem Eng Sci 2009. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ces.2008.11.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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50
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Soleymani A, Yousefi H, Turunen I. Dimensionless number for identification of flow patterns inside a T-micromixer. Chem Eng Sci 2008. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ces.2008.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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