Issue 8, 2005

Sinusoidal crossflow microfiltration device—experimental and computational flowfield analysis

Abstract

We present an analysis of the flowfield inside a novel crossflow microfiltration device. The filter performance relies on shear focusing by means of a corrugated channel. The flow and shear stress characteristics inside the filter are studied by means of both micro Particle Image Velocimetry (micro-PIV) measurements and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis. We show that an increase of the shear rate by 55–85% as compared to a straight channel geometry is achieved for crossflow velocities ranging from 0.05 m s−1–0.8 m s−1 (Re 5–70). This substantial increase in the local wall shear may improve filter performance in terms of reduced clogging and cell cake formation as compared to conventional crossflow filtration devices. Our current investigation, along with the fact that the filter employs no complex, three dimensional geometrical patterns, advanced pumping schemes, nor has a need for costly assembly and sealing procedures, indicates that the sinusoidal crossflow microfiltration module may serve as a technically and economically feasible solution for integrated lab-on-a-chip devices. Furthermore, the presented approach of shear-focusing may be beneficial in other bio-chemical contexts, such as cell lysis and surface chemistry.

Graphical abstract: Sinusoidal crossflow microfiltration device—experimental and computational flowfield analysis

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
31 Jan 2005
Accepted
13 May 2005
First published
10 Jun 2005

Lab Chip, 2005,5, 897-903

Sinusoidal crossflow microfiltration device—experimental and computational flowfield analysis

M. M. Mielnik, R. P. Ekatpure, L. R. Sætran and F. Schönfeld, Lab Chip, 2005, 5, 897 DOI: 10.1039/B501490E

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements