A novel method is presented for on-chip temperature measurements using a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) thin film dissolved with Rhodamine B dye. This thin film is sandwiched between two glass substrates (one of which is 150 microm thick) and bonded to a microchannel molded in a PDMS substrate. Whole-chip (liquid and substrate) temperature measurements can be obtained via fluorescent intensity visualization. For verification purposes, the thin film was tested with a tapered microchannel subjected to Joule heating, with resulting axial temperature gradients comparing well with numerical simulations. Errors induced by the definite film thickness are discussed and accounted for during experimental and analytical analysis. Alternative validation using the traditional in-channel Rhodamine B injection method was also attempted. The thin film has several advantages over traditional methods. First, false intensity readings due to adsorption and absorption of Rhodamine B into PDMS channels are eliminated. Second, whole-chip temperature measurements are possible. Third, separation of working liquid from Rhodamine B dye prevents possible electrophoresis effects.

This is the second part of a two-part study on the generation of droplets at a microfluidic T-junction operating in the transition regime. In the preceding paper [Phys. Rev. E 85, 016322 (2012)], we presented our experimental observations of droplet formation and decomposed the process into three sequential stages defined as the lag, filling, and necking stages. Here we develop a model that describes the performance of microfluidic T-junction generators working in the squeezing to transition regimes where confinement of the droplet dominates the formation process. The model incorporates a detailed geometric description of the drop shape during the formation process combined with a force balance and necking criteria to define the droplet size, production rate, and spacing. The model inherently captures the influence of the intersection geometry, including the channel width ratio and height-to-width ratio, capillary number, and flow ratio, on the performance of the generator. The model is validated by comparing it to speed videos of the formation process for several T-junction geometries across a range of capillary numbers and viscosity ratios.

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This is the first part of a two-part study on the generation of droplets at a microfluidic T-junction operating in the transition regime where confinement of the droplet creates a large squeezing pressure that influences droplet formation. In this regime, the operation of the T-junction depends on the geometry of the intersection (height-to-width ratio, inlet width ratio), capillary number, flow ratio, and viscosity ratio of the two phases. Here in paper I we presented our experimental observations through the analysis of high-speed videos of the droplet formation process. Various parameters are tracked during the formation cycle such as the shape of the droplet (penetration depth and neck), interdroplet spacing, production rate, and flow of both phases across several T-junction designs and flow conditions. Generally, the formation process is defined by a two-stage model consisting of an initial filling stage followed by a necking stage. However, video evidence suggests the inclusion of a third stage, which we term the lag stage, at the beginning of the formation process that accounts for the retraction of the interface back into the injection channel after detachment. Based on the observations made in this paper, a model is developed to describe the formation process in paper II, which can be used to understand the design and operation of T-junction generators in the transition regime.

Droplet-based microfluidics is an emerging high-throughput screening technology finding applications in a variety of areas such as life science research, drug discovery and material synthesis. In this paper we present a cost-effective, scalable microwave system that can be integrated with microfluidic devices enabling remote, simultaneous sensing and heating of individual nanoliter-sized droplets generated in microchannels. The key component of this microwave system is an electrically small resonator that is able to distinguish between materials with different electrical properties (i.e. permittivity, conductivity). The change in these properties causes a shift in the operating frequency of the resonator, which can be used for sensing purposes. Alternatively, if microwave power is delivered to the sensing region at the frequency associated with a particular material (i.e. droplet), then only this material receives the power while passing the resonator leaving the surrounding materials (i.e. carrier fluid and chip material) unaffected. Therefore this method allows sensing and heating of individual droplets to be inherently synchronized, eliminating the need for external triggers. We confirmed the performance of the sensor by applying it to differentiate between various dairy fluids, identify salt solutions and detect water droplets with different glycerol concentrations. We experimentally verified that this system can increase the droplet temperature from room temperature by 42 °C within 5.62 ms with an input power of 27 dBm. Finally we employed this system to thermally initiate the formation of hydrogel particles out of the droplets that are being heated by this system.

When droplets enter a junction they sort to the channel with the highest flow rate at that instant. Transport is regulated by a discrete time-delayed feedback that results in a highly periodic behavior where specific patterns can continue to cycle indefinitely. Between these highly ordered regimes are chaotic structures where no pattern is evident. Here we develop a model that describes droplet sorting under various asymmetries: branch geometry (length, cross-section), droplet resistance and pressures. First, a model is developed based on the continuum assumption and then, with the assistance of numerical simulations, a discrete model is derived to predict the length and composition of the sorting pattern. Furthermore we derive all unique sequences that are possible for a given distribution and develop a preliminary estimation of why chaotic regimes form. The model is validated by comparing it to numerical simulations and results from microfluidic experiments in PDMS chips with good agreement.

Deposition of colloidal- and nano-scale particles on surfaces is critical to numerous natural and engineered environmental, health, and industrial applications ranging from drinking water treatment to semi-conductor manufacturing. Nano-scale surface roughness-induced hydrodynamic impacts on particle deposition were evaluated in the absence of an energy barrier to deposition in a parallel plate system. A non-linear, non-monotonic relationship between deposition surface roughness and particle deposition flux was observed and a critical roughness size associated with minimum deposition flux or “sag effect” was identified. This effect was more significant for nanoparticles (<1 μm) than for colloids and was numerically simulated using a Convective-Diffusion model and experimentally validated. Inclusion of flow field and hydrodynamic retardation effects explained particle deposition profiles better than when only the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) force was considered. This work provides 1) a first comprehensive framework for describing the hydrodynamic impacts of nano-scale surface roughness on particle deposition by unifying hydrodynamic forces (using the most current approaches for describing flow field profiles and hydrodynamic retardation effects) with appropriately modified expressions for DLVO interaction energies, and gravity forces in one model and 2) a foundation for further describing the impacts of more complicated scales of deposition surface roughness on particle deposition.

This study extends our previous work on droplet generation in microfluidic T-junction generators to include dynamic interfacial tension effects created by the presence of surfactants. In Paper I [T. Glawdel, C. Elbuken, and C. L. Ren, Phys. Rev. E 85, 016322 (2012)], we presented experimental findings regarding the formation process in the squeezing-to-transition regime, and in Paper II [T. Glawdel, C. Elbuken, and C. L. Ren, Phys. Rev. E 85, 016323 (2012)] we developed a theoretical model that describes the performance of T-junction generators without surfactants. Here we study dynamic interfacial tension effects for two surfactants, one with a small molecular weight that adsorbs quickly, and the other with a large molecular weight that adsorbs slowly. Using the force balance developed in Paper II we extract the dynamic interfacial tension from high speed videos obtained during experiments. We then develop a theoretical model to predict the dynamic interfacial tension in microfluidic T-junction generators as a function of the surfactant properties, flow conditions, and generator design. This model is then incorporated into the overall model for generator performance to effectively predict the size of droplets produced when surfactants are present.