On-line rheological characterization of semi-solid formulations.

The rheological profile of a semi-solid product is a critical quality attribute. To monitor changes of this attribute during manufacturing, it would be beneficial to measure the rheological parameters in an on-line or in-line mode and implement this as a part of a control strategy for manufacturing of semi-solids. None of the process analytical technology (PAT) tools for measuring the rheological parameters have yet been widely accepted in the pharmaceutical area, as most of the equipment can only measure viscosity.

Parametric optimization of inverse trapezoid oleophobic surfaces.

In this paper, we introduce a comprehensive and versatile approach to the parametric shape optimization of oleophobic surfaces. We evaluate the performance of inverse trapezoid microstructures in terms of three objective parameters: apparent contact angle, maximum sustainable hydrostatic pressure, and mechanical robustness (Im, M.; Im, H:; Lee, J.

Dynamic adaption of vascular morphology.

The structure of vascular networks adapts continuously to meet changes in demand of the surrounding tissue. Most of the known vascular adaptation mechanisms are based on local reactions to local stimuli such as pressure and flow, which in turn reflects influence from the surrounding tissue. Here we present a simple two-dimensional model in which, as an alternative approach, the tissue is modeled as a porous medium with intervening sharply defined flow channels.

Experimental characterisation of a novel viscoelastic rectifier design.

A planar microfluidic system with contractions and obstacles is characterized in terms of anisotropic flow resistance due to viscoelastic effects. The working mechanism is illustrated using streak photography, while the diodicity performance is quantified by pressure drop measurements. The point of maximum performance is found to occur at relatively low elasticity levels, with diodicity around 3.

HistoFlex--a microfluidic device providing uniform flow conditions enabling highly sensitive, reproducible and quantitative in situ hybridizations.

A microfluidic device (the HistoFlex) designed to perform and monitor molecular biological assays under dynamic flow conditions on microscope slide-substrates, with special emphasis on analyzing histological tissue sections, is presented. Microscope slides were reversibly sealed onto a cast polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) insert, patterned with distribution channels and reaction chambers. Topology optimization was used to design reaction chambers with uniform flow conditions.

Topology optimized microbioreactors.

This article presents the fusion of two hitherto unrelated fields--microbioreactors and topology optimization. The basis for this study is a rectangular microbioreactor with homogeneously distributed immobilized brewers yeast cells (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) that produce a recombinant protein. Topology optimization is then used to change the spatial distribution of cells in the reactor in order to optimize for maximal product flow out of the reactor.

Optimal homogenization of perfusion flows in microfluidic bio-reactors: a numerical study.

In recent years, the interest in small-scale bio-reactors has increased dramatically. To ensure homogeneous conditions within the complete area of perfused microfluidic bio-reactors, we develop a general design of a continually feed bio-reactor with uniform perfusion flow. This is achieved by introducing a specific type of perfusion inlet to the reaction area.

A generalized theoretical model for "continuous particle separation in a microchannel having asymmetrically arranged multiple branches".

In this article we present a generalized theoretical model for the continuous separation of particles using the pinched flow fractionation method. So far the theoretical models have not been able to predict the separation of particles without the use of correction factors. In this article we present a model which is capable of predicting the separation from first principles.

Scaling behavior of optimally structured catalytic microfluidic reactors.

In this study of catalytic microfluidic reactors we show that, when optimally structured, these reactors share underlying scaling properties. The scaling is predicted theoretically and verified numerically. Furthermore, we show how to increase the reaction rate significantly by distributing the active porous material within the reactor using a high-level implementation of topology optimization.

Universality in edge-source diffusion dynamics.

We show that in edge-source diffusion dynamics the integrated concentration N(t) has a universal dependence with a characteristic time scale tau=(A/P)2pi/(4D), where D is the diffusion constant while A and P are the cross-sectional area and perimeter of the domain, respectively. For the short-time dynamics we find a universal square-root asymptotic dependence N(t)=N0(sqrt)t/tau while in the long-time dynamics N(t) saturates exponentially at N0. The exponential saturation is a general feature while the associated coefficients are weakly geometry dependent.

Reaction-diffusion dynamics: confrontation between theory and experiment in a microfluidic reactor.

We confront, quantitatively, the theoretical description of the reaction-diffusion process of a second-order reaction to experiment. The reaction at work is Ca(2+)/CaGreen, a fluorescent tracer for calcium. The reactor is a T-shaped microchannel, 10 microm deep, 200 microm wide, and 2 cm long.

Reexamination of Hagen-Poiseuille flow: shape dependence of the hydraulic resistance in microchannels.

We consider pressure-driven, steady-state Poiseuille flow in straight channels with various cross-sectional shapes: elliptic, rectangular, triangular, and harmonic-perturbed circles. A given shape is characterized by its perimeter P and area A which are combined into the dimensionless compactness number C= P2/A, while the hydraulic resistance is characterized by the well-known dimensionless geometrical correction factor alpha. We find that alpha depends linearly on C, which points out C as a single dimensionless measure characterizing flow properties as well as the strength and effectiveness of surface-related phenomena central to lab-on-a-chip applications.