System and method for splitting droplet
A droplet, double emulsion technology, applied in chemical instruments and methods, analytical materials, transportation and packaging, etc., can solve the problems of unstable fluid flow rate and difficult control of fluid flow.
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Embodiment 1
[0108] Double emulsions are droplets that contain additional smaller droplets inside. Because of their small size and core-shell structure, they are useful in applications requiring microencapsulation, including food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. With microfluidic devices, double emulsion droplets can be formed with controlled properties, including controlled size and volume fraction. The droplets can also be efficiently filled with active materials: typically, 100% efficient encapsulation can be achieved, while conversely, bulk methods achieve less than 10% active encapsulation. However, there are drawbacks to this method: an important example arises from the small size of the device, which leads to a very slow rate of droplet formation. Typically, double emulsions are formed at only a few ml / hour, which may be too slow for some applications.
[0109] One way to increase throughput is to parallelize units. Instead of a single device producing a small number of droplets,...
Embodiment 2
[0116] Splitting can also be used to increase the productivity of double-emulsified droplets. In this example, a split array is added to the end of a large droplet maker, such as that discussed in Example 1, although this time it is a double emulsion maker. The double emulsion device consists of two series-connected cross-channel junctions, such as Figure 4B with Figure 5 shown in the upper row of the image. As discussed herein, the devices were fabricated in poly(dimethylsiloxane) using soft lithography. The double emulsion device operated ~5 times faster than the conventional droplet maker; the speed of the double emulsion device was slower relative to the Example 1 device due to the lower number of split junctions.
[0117] Figure 5 The sequence of images illustrating the formation of a double emulsion (top row) using one-step double emulsification and breaking it into smaller droplets using a split junction (lower row). The device bisects the double emulsion three ...
Embodiment 3
[0122] In this example, to quantify break-up kinetics, the length of the droplets along their central axis was measured as a function of time. see Figure 6A with 6B , showing the length (L / w) of single and double emulsion droplets, respectively, as a function of time, measured from their rear interface to the splitting apex at the splitting junction. The length was normalized by the width of the channel causing the junction. For double emulsions, while providing external droplets (L out ) and the inner droplet (L in )length. As noted, experiments were also performed with different capillary numbers.
[0123] In these experiments, single emulsion droplets entered split junctions that appeared to have a sausage shape because they were initially confined within narrow entry channels. As they enter the split junction, two lobes appear on each droplet; initially, the droplets do not completely block the channels, but allow the surrounding continuous phase to pass around them...
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