Issue 21, 2010

Microchannel deformations due to solvent-induced PDMS swelling

Abstract

The compatibility of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) channels with certain solvents is a well known problem of soft lithography techniques, in particular when it leads to the swelling of the PDMS blocks. However, little is known about the modification of microchannel geometries when they are subjected to swelling solvents. Here, we experimentally measure the deformations of the roof of PDMS microchannels due to such solvents. The dynamics of impregnation of the solvents in PDMS and its relation to volume dilation are first addressed in a model experiment, allowing the precise measurement of the diffusion coefficients of oils in PDMS. When Hexadecane, a swelling solvent, fills a microchannel 1 mm in width and 50 μm in height, we measure that the channel roof bends inwards and takes a parabolic shape with a maximum deformation of 7 μm. The amplitude of the subsidence is found to increase with the channel width, reaching 28 μm for a 2 mm wide test section. On the other hand, perfluorinated oils do not swell the PDMS and the microchannel geometry is not affected by the presence of perfluorodecalin. Finally, we observe that the trajectories of droplets flowing in this microchannel are strongly affected by the deformations: drops carried by swelling oils are pushed towards the edges of the channel while those carried by non-swelling oils remain in the channel center.

Graphical abstract: Microchannel deformations due to solvent-induced PDMS swelling

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
23 Feb 2010
Accepted
24 Jun 2010
First published
16 Sep 2010

Lab Chip, 2010,10, 2972-2978

Microchannel deformations due to solvent-induced PDMS swelling

R. Dangla, F. Gallaire and C. N. Baroud, Lab Chip, 2010, 10, 2972 DOI: 10.1039/C003504A

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