Smart Microfluidics: The Role of Stimuli- Responsive Polymers in Microfluidic Devices

Argentiere, Simona; Gigli, Giuseppe; Gerges, Mariangela Mortato Irini; Blasi, Laura

doi:10.5772/38072

Cited by 14 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 145 publications

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“…Because Vorticella stalks respond to concentration changes in Ca 2+ or divalent cations in the medium, such stalks can operate as Ca 2+ -responsive actuators [ 20 , 106 ]. Similarly, pH-responsive polymers change their shape in response to the pH value of the medium, and thus their applications suggest possible engineering applications of Vorticella stalks in microscale devices [ 138 , 139 ], such as actuating microvalves [ 140 , 141 ] and microlenses [ 142 , 143 ].…”

Section: Stalk and Ultrafast Contraction Of Vorticella mentioning

confidence: 99%

Vorticella: A Protozoan for Bio-Inspired Engineering

Ryu¹,

Pepper

Nagai

2016

Micromachines

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In this review, we introduce Vorticella as a model biological micromachine for microscale engineering systems. Vorticella has two motile organelles: the oral cilia of the zooid and the contractile spasmoneme in the stalk. The oral cilia beat periodically, generating a water flow that translates food particles toward the animal at speeds in the order of 0.1–1 mm/s. The ciliary flow of Vorticella has been characterized by experimental measurement and theoretical modeling, and tested for flow control and mixing in microfluidic systems. The spasmoneme contracts in a few milliseconds, coiling the stalk and moving the zooid at 15–90 mm/s. Because the spasmoneme generates tension in the order of 10–100 nN, powered by calcium ion binding, it serves as a model system for biomimetic actuators in microscale engineering systems. The spasmonemal contraction of Vorticella has been characterized by experimental measurement of its dynamics and energetics, and both live and extracted Vorticellae have been tested for moving microscale objects. We describe past work to elucidate the contraction mechanism of the spasmoneme, recognizing that past and continuing efforts will increase the possibilities of using the spasmoneme as a microscale actuator as well as leading towards bioinspired actuators mimicking the spasmoneme.

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Section: Stalk and Ultrafast Contraction Of Vorticella mentioning

confidence: 99%

Vorticella: A Protozoan for Bio-Inspired Engineering

Ryu¹,

Pepper

Nagai

2016

Micromachines

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“…[3] Advantages of this approach include a significant reduction in reactant volume (down to microlitres or even picolitres), parallel processing of multiple analytes, portability, [4] multistage automation, [5] single cell sampling [6] and manipulation. [7] Therefore, the potential for microfluidic devices is tremendous. Nevertheless, the microfluidics field is still very much in its infancy and a number of areas are constantly under heavy investigation, including micro-fabrication, component integration, device generalisation and fluid flow and control.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stimuli-Controlled Fluid Control and Microvehicle Movement in Microfluidic Channels

Dunne

Francis

Delaney

et al. 2022

Encyclopedia of Smart Materials

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Integration of stimuli-responsive materials into microfluidic systems provides a means to locally manipulate flow at the microscale, in a non-invasive manner, while also reducing system complexity. In recent years, several modes of stimulation have been applied, including electrical, magnetic, light and temperature, among others. To achieve remote control of flow in microfluidics using external stimulation, two main approaches have emerged in the recent years: 1. Control of flow through stimuli-induced actuation of microfluidic components (valves, pumps, mixers, flow sorters), most often fabricated from soft polymeric materials; 2. Stimuli-controlled manipulation of discrete micrometer-sized "vehicles" (droplets, beads, Janus particles, etc.) through localized induced changes in wettability or surface tension.The focus of this chapter will be to identify and compare the similarities and underlying mechanisms employed in the current state of the art research in stimuli-controlled fluid control and micro-vehicle movement fields. It will also endeavor to propose possible directions for the evolution of these areas of research.

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“…An important feature of biomicrofluidic devices [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] is that the fluid flow is laminar. 8,9 Adjacent flow streams translate by advection without significant mixing, and solutes in the adjacent streams only intermingle via the process of diffusion, which is therefore an especially important mechanism of particle transport on the microscale.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[39][40][41] We focus here on the latter type as the variation of MG size with pH can be well controlled. This is an important stimulus for MG as they are used as biosensors [5][6][7] and as drug delivery agents whose function depends on pH. 42 A microgel particle subject to a pH gradient, pHðRÞ, can cause its diameter, r, to be RÀ dependent, reflecting the local pH value.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatially dependent diffusion coefficient as a model for pH sensitive microgel particles in microchannels

2016

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Solute transport and intermixing in microfluidic devices is strongly dependent on diffusional processes. Brownian Dynamics simulations of pressure-driven flow of model microgel particles in microchannels have been carried out to explore these processes and the factors that influence them. The effects of a pH-field that induces a spatial dependence of particle size and consequently the self-diffusion coefficient and system thermodynamic state were focused on. Simulations were carried out in 1D to represent some of the cross flow dependencies, and in 2D and 3D to include the effects of flow and particle concentration, with typical stripe-like diffusion coefficient spatial variations. In 1D, the mean square displacement and particle displacement probability distribution function agreed well with an analytically solvable model consisting of infinitely repulsive walls and a discontinuous pHprofile in the middle of the channel. Skew category Brownian motion and nonGaussian dynamics were observed, which follows from correlations of step lengths in the system, and can be considered to be an example of so-called "diffusing diffusivity." In Poiseuille flow simulations, the particles accumulated in regions of larger diffusivity and the largest particle concentration throughput was found when this region was in the middle of the channel. The trends in the calculated cross-channel diffusional behavior were found to be very similar in 2D and 3D. Published by AIP Publishing. [http://dx

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Smart Microfluidics: The Role of Stimuli- Responsive Polymers in Microfluidic Devices

Cited by 14 publications

References 145 publications

Vorticella: A Protozoan for Bio-Inspired Engineering

Vorticella: A Protozoan for Bio-Inspired Engineering

Stimuli-Controlled Fluid Control and Microvehicle Movement in Microfluidic Channels

Spatially dependent diffusion coefficient as a model for pH sensitive microgel particles in microchannels

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