Microfluidics in Chemical Engineering

A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Chemical Processes and Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 June 2021) | Viewed by 17993

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0R6, Canada
Interests: lab-on-a-chip devices; biosensors; droplet microfluidics; microfluidic systems for biomedical applications

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
National Research Council Canada, Canada
Interests: microfabrication; integration and automation of environmental analysis; biochemical reactions and diagnostic processes

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Microfluidics has been widely employed in chemical and biological applications. Due to the microscale to nanoscale dimensions of channels, microfluidic systems dramatically increase the analysis speed and reduce the reaction/separation time and sample and reagent consumption. The advantages of microfluidics for chemical mixing, biological reactors, mechanisms, chemical synthesis, and sensing have allowed for new discoveries that are very different from those of traditional macroscopic environments. Soft-lithography is the conventional approach to the fabrication of microfluidic devices due to its simplicity and the versatility of soft materials, including transparency, chemical inertness, biocompatibility, and mechanical durability. Recent developments have introduced advanced materials and technologies to device fabrication and scaling-up processes; examples are three-dimensional (3D) printing, hot embossing, and micro-injection molding. These developments have boosted the utilization of microfluidic systems in various areas.

The applications of microfluidic systems in chemical processing and engineering are unique and include mixing/reactions in a confined geometry, microreactors, controlled multiphases, droplet-based microfluidic technologies, and chemical synthesis of functional materials. This Special Issue, entitled “Microfluidics in Chemical Engineering”, aims to foster novel microfluidic systems for application in chemical and biological processes to enlarge the scope of the Processes journal.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

  • microfluidic and nanofluidic devices and fabrication methods;
  • development of microfluidic systems for chemical and biological applications;
  • advanced materials for chemical synthesis and processing;
  • microreactors for chemical reactions and processing; and
  • droplet microfluidics and its applications.

Dr. Byeong-Ui Moon
Dr. Tae-Hyeong Kim
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • micro–nanofluidics
  • lab-on-a-chip devices
  • reaction and separation
  • advanced materials
  • droplet microfluidics
  • chemical synthesis
  • chemical sensors.

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 5441 KiB  
Article
Effective Similarity Variables for the Computations of MHD Flow of Williamson Nanofluid over a Non-Linear Stretching Surface
by Kamran Ahmed, Luthais B. McCash, Tanvir Akbar and Sohail Nadeem
Processes 2022, 10(6), 1119; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10061119 - 2 Jun 2022
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2551
Abstract
The present study concerns investigating the two-dimensional Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) boundary layer flow of Williamson nanofluid over a non-linear stretching sheet. The focus of this study is based on the global influence of the non-Newtonian Williamson fluid parameter (λ) rather than the [...] Read more.
The present study concerns investigating the two-dimensional Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) boundary layer flow of Williamson nanofluid over a non-linear stretching sheet. The focus of this study is based on the global influence of the non-Newtonian Williamson fluid parameter (λ) rather than the local one that exists in the literature for linear and non-linear stretching cases. The mathematical model of the problem is based on the law of conservation of mass, momentum, and energy. The derived partial differential equations are transformed into ordinary differential equations by applying an appropriate similarity transformation. The subsequent equations are solved numerically by using the Shooting method. The physical quantities Skin friction coefficient, as well as the Sherwood and Nusselt numbers are computed locally. To validate the implemented shooting method, a comparison is made with the results obtained by Matlab function bvp4c, and good agreement is found. The Prandtl number, Pr, has an increasing impact of 25.14% on the wall temperature gradient. The impact of various physical parameters are presented through graphs and tables. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microfluidics in Chemical Engineering)
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22 pages, 6987 KiB  
Article
Microfluidic Network Simulations Enable On-Demand Prediction of Control Parameters for Operating Lab-on-a-Chip-Devices
by Julia Sophie Böke, Daniel Kraus and Thomas Henkel
Processes 2021, 9(8), 1320; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9081320 - 29 Jul 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4512
Abstract
Reliable operation of lab-on-a-chip systems depends on user-friendly, precise, and predictable fluid management tailored to particular sub-tasks of the microfluidic process protocol and their required sample fluids. Pressure-driven flow control, where the sample fluids are delivered to the chip from pressurized feed vessels, [...] Read more.
Reliable operation of lab-on-a-chip systems depends on user-friendly, precise, and predictable fluid management tailored to particular sub-tasks of the microfluidic process protocol and their required sample fluids. Pressure-driven flow control, where the sample fluids are delivered to the chip from pressurized feed vessels, simplifies the fluid management even for multiple fluids. The achieved flow rates depend on the pressure settings, fluid properties, and pressure-throughput characteristics of the complete microfluidic system composed of the chip and the interconnecting tubing. The prediction of the required pressure settings for achieving given flow rates simplifies the control tasks and enables opportunities for automation. In our work, we utilize a fast-running, Kirchhoff-based microfluidic network simulation that solves the complete microfluidic system for in-line prediction of the required pressure settings within less than 200 ms. The appropriateness of and benefits from this approach are demonstrated as exemplary for creating multi-component laminar co-flow and the creation of droplets with variable composition. Image-based methods were combined with chemometric approaches for the readout and correlation of the created multi-component flow patterns with the predictions obtained from the solver. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microfluidics in Chemical Engineering)
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18 pages, 10171 KiB  
Article
Impact of Binary Chemical Reaction and Activation Energy on Heat and Mass Transfer of Marangoni Driven Boundary Layer Flow of a Non-Newtonian Nanofluid
by Ramanahalli Jayadevamurthy Punith Gowda, Rangaswamy Naveen Kumar, Anigere Marikempaiah Jyothi, Ballajja Chandrappa Prasannakumara and Ioannis E. Sarris
Processes 2021, 9(4), 702; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9040702 - 16 Apr 2021
Cited by 206 | Viewed by 5783
Abstract
The flow and heat transfer of non-Newtonian nanofluids has an extensive range of applications in oceanography, the cooling of metallic plates, melt-spinning, the movement of biological fluids, heat exchangers technology, coating and suspensions. In view of these applications, we studied the steady Marangoni [...] Read more.
The flow and heat transfer of non-Newtonian nanofluids has an extensive range of applications in oceanography, the cooling of metallic plates, melt-spinning, the movement of biological fluids, heat exchangers technology, coating and suspensions. In view of these applications, we studied the steady Marangoni driven boundary layer flow, heat and mass transfer characteristics of a nanofluid. A non-Newtonian second-grade liquid model is used to deliberate the effect of activation energy on the chemically reactive non-Newtonian nanofluid. By applying suitable similarity transformations, the system of governing equations is transformed into a set of ordinary differential equations. These reduced equations are tackled numerically using the Runge–Kutta–Fehlberg fourth-fifth order (RKF-45) method. The velocity, concentration, thermal fields and rate of heat transfer are explored for the embedded non-dimensional parameters graphically. Our results revealed that the escalating values of the Marangoni number improve the velocity gradient and reduce the heat transfer. As the values of the porosity parameter increase, the velocity gradient is reduced and the heat transfer is improved. Finally, the Nusselt number is found to decline as the porosity parameter increases. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microfluidics in Chemical Engineering)
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11 pages, 4533 KiB  
Article
Reversible Bonding of Thermoplastic Elastomers for Cell Patterning Applications
by Byeong-Ui Moon, Keith Morton, Kebin Li, Caroline Miville-Godin and Teodor Veres
Processes 2021, 9(1), 54; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9010054 - 29 Dec 2020
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3064
Abstract
In this paper, we present a simple, versatile method that creates patterns for cell migration studies using thermoplastic elastomer (TPE). The TPE material used here can be robustly, but reversibly, bonded to a variety of plastic substrates, allowing patterning of cultured cells in [...] Read more.
In this paper, we present a simple, versatile method that creates patterns for cell migration studies using thermoplastic elastomer (TPE). The TPE material used here can be robustly, but reversibly, bonded to a variety of plastic substrates, allowing patterning of cultured cells in a microenvironment. We first examine the bonding strength of TPE to glass and polystyrene substrates and com-pare it to thermoset silicone-based PDMS under various conditions and demonstrate that the TPE can be strongly and reversibly bonded on commercially available polystyrene culture plates. In cell migration studies, cell patterns are templated around TPE features cored from a thin TPE film. We show that the significance of fibroblast cell growth with fetal bovine serum (FBS)-cell culture media compared to the cells cultured without FBS, analyzed over two days of cell culture. This simple approach allows us to generate cell patterns without harsh manipulations like scratch assays and to avoid damaging the cells. We also confirm that the TPE material is non-toxic to cell growth and supports a high viability of fibroblasts and breast cancer cells. We anticipate this TPE-based patterning approach can be further utilized for many other cell patterning applications such as in cell-to-cell communication studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microfluidics in Chemical Engineering)
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