Microfluidic Manipulation and Pumping
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Introduction Microfluidic systems
are becoming an increasingly important tool for chemical, biochemical and
biological analysis, as reported by a variety of publications in recent
years. Microchannels, reaction chambers, reservoirs, micro barriers and even
detection mechanisms can be integrated in a small microfluidic system. It's
desirable to integrate microfluidic devices for the following functions
including sampling, sample transport, necessary chemical reactions,
separation and detection. We develop a series of novel designs for
microfluidic manipulation and pumping. A novel
electrolysis-based micropump using air bubble to achieve indirect actuation
is proposed and demonstrated. Compared with other electrochemical micropumps,
our micropump could drive microfluid without inducing the pH-value variation
in the main channel and the choking/sticking phenomena of electrolytic
bubbles. It is promising for biomedical applications, especially for
application like blood transportation. Our proposed on-chip
electrolysis-bubble actuator with the features of room temperature operation,
low driving voltage, low power consumption and large actuation force not only
can minimize the possibility of cell-damage but also may enable portable and
implantable lab-on-a-chip microsystems.
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Selected Publication |
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[1] Sheng-Hung
Chiu and Cheng-Hsien Liu, “An air-bubble-actuated micropump for on-chip
blood transportation,” Lab Chip,
2009, 9, 1524 [2] Chih-Ming
Cheng and Cheng-Hsien Liu “An Electrolysis-Bubble-Actuated Micropump
based on the Roughness Gradient Design of Hydrophobic Surface,” Journal of MicroElectroMechanical Systems
16 (5), pp. 1095-1105, 2007 [3] Chih-Ming
Cheng and Cheng-Hsien Liu, “A Capillary System with
Thermal-Bubble-Actuated 1ŚN Micro Fluidic Switches via Time-Sequence Power
Control for Continuous Liquid Handling,” Journal of MicroElectroMechanical Systems, Vol. 15, n. 2, pp.
296-307, April 2006 |