Versatile Microfluidic Platforms Enabled by Novel Magnetorheological Elastomer Microactuators
Versatile Microfluidic Platforms Enabled by Novel Magnetorheological Elastomer Microactuators
Microfluidic systems enable rapid diagnosis of diseases, biological analysis, drug screening, and high-precision materials synthesis. In spite of these remarkable abilities, conventional microfluidic systems are microfabricated monolithically on a single platform and their operations rely on bulky expensive external equipment. This restricts their applications outside of research laboratories and prevents development and assembly of truly versatile and complex systems. Here, novel magnetorheological elastomer (MRE) microactuators are presented including pumps and mixers using an innovative actuation mechanism without the need of delicate elements such as thin membranes. Modularized elements are realized using such actuators, which can be easily integrated and actuated using a single self-contained driving unit to create a modular, miniaturized, and robust platform. The performance of the microactuators is investigated via a series of experiments and a proof-of-concept modular system is developed to demonstrate the viability of the platform for self-contained applications. The presented MRE microactuators are small size, simple, and efficient, offering a great potential to significantly advance the current research on complex microfluidic systems.
lab-on-a-chip, magnetorheological elastomers, microactuators, microfluidics, modular systems
Tang, Shi Yang
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Zhang, Xuchun
ac8db894-8371-4dfa-a80d-2cc873d3fcde
Sun, Shuaishuai
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Yuan, Dan
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Zhao, Qianbin
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Yan, Sheng
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Deng, Lei
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Yun, Guolin
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Zhang, Jun
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Zhang, Shiwu
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Li, Weihua
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21 February 2018
Tang, Shi Yang
1d0f15c6-2a3e-4bad-a3d8-fc267db93ed4
Zhang, Xuchun
ac8db894-8371-4dfa-a80d-2cc873d3fcde
Sun, Shuaishuai
94afa956-f4bc-44b5-a5ce-23850fd51eda
Yuan, Dan
76b9b77e-dda5-4682-8db0-75bfad1d1258
Zhao, Qianbin
4e956b7f-4fb6-42fa-9a3b-b9a7c3703493
Yan, Sheng
1cf2968c-1639-4c47-a90b-481b86c441cb
Deng, Lei
2f7ab8fa-0882-40a3-af89-33942dc64866
Yun, Guolin
240c3dc9-c224-41c0-8740-de165d1eb90b
Zhang, Jun
a4628c00-1e1c-4729-8d8a-e7619a2c1edf
Zhang, Shiwu
da008f91-71fa-42fb-879e-68b91429e1d6
Li, Weihua
e2555036-0e48-425a-afeb-db6ffba5238e
Tang, Shi Yang, Zhang, Xuchun, Sun, Shuaishuai, Yuan, Dan, Zhao, Qianbin, Yan, Sheng, Deng, Lei, Yun, Guolin, Zhang, Jun, Zhang, Shiwu and Li, Weihua
(2018)
Versatile Microfluidic Platforms Enabled by Novel Magnetorheological Elastomer Microactuators.
Advanced Functional Materials, 28 (8), [1705484].
(doi:10.1002/adfm.201705484).
Abstract
Microfluidic systems enable rapid diagnosis of diseases, biological analysis, drug screening, and high-precision materials synthesis. In spite of these remarkable abilities, conventional microfluidic systems are microfabricated monolithically on a single platform and their operations rely on bulky expensive external equipment. This restricts their applications outside of research laboratories and prevents development and assembly of truly versatile and complex systems. Here, novel magnetorheological elastomer (MRE) microactuators are presented including pumps and mixers using an innovative actuation mechanism without the need of delicate elements such as thin membranes. Modularized elements are realized using such actuators, which can be easily integrated and actuated using a single self-contained driving unit to create a modular, miniaturized, and robust platform. The performance of the microactuators is investigated via a series of experiments and a proof-of-concept modular system is developed to demonstrate the viability of the platform for self-contained applications. The presented MRE microactuators are small size, simple, and efficient, offering a great potential to significantly advance the current research on complex microfluidic systems.
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Published date: 21 February 2018
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
S.-Y.T. and X.Z. contributed equally to this work. Dr. Shi-Yang Tang is the recipient of the Vice-Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Research Fellowship funded by the University of Wollongong. The authors acknowledge use of the facilities and the assistance of Tony Romeo and Dr. David Mitchell at the University of Wollongong Electron Microscopy Centre.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
Keywords:
lab-on-a-chip, magnetorheological elastomers, microactuators, microfluidics, modular systems
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 481705
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/481705
ISSN: 1616-301X
PURE UUID: daf052fe-ebc2-4dd8-8443-43edd37067c3
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Date deposited: 06 Sep 2023 16:50
Last modified: 06 Jun 2024 02:18
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Contributors
Author:
Shi Yang Tang
Author:
Xuchun Zhang
Author:
Shuaishuai Sun
Author:
Dan Yuan
Author:
Qianbin Zhao
Author:
Sheng Yan
Author:
Lei Deng
Author:
Guolin Yun
Author:
Jun Zhang
Author:
Shiwu Zhang
Author:
Weihua Li
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