Unwanted gas bubbles are a challenge for microfluidic-based systems, as adherence to channel networks can disrupt fluid delivery. This is especially true for devices with biological applications, as the presence of a single bubble creates thin fluid films with extremely high shear stresses, which can damage biological samples. Current strategies to remove bubbles require complicated fabrication or off-chip components. This thesis describes an on-chip microfluidic strategy utilizing permeation for in-plane trapping and removal of occasional gas bubbles. The trap was demonstrated with nitrogen bubbles, which were consistently removed at a rate of 0.14 µL/min for a single trap, and shown to have long-term operation capability by removing approximately 4,000 bubbles during one day without failure. The trap was integrated with a microfluidic system for the study of small blood vessels. Experiments were complemented with analytical and numerical models to characterize the bubble removal process.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:TORONTO/oai:tspace.library.utoronto.ca:1807/32258 |
| Date | 21 March 2012 |
| Creators | Lochovsky, Conrad |
| Contributors | Guenther, Axel |
| Source Sets | University of Toronto |
| Language | en_ca |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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