Air pressure control module for microfluidics and nanoparticle synthesis system

Abstract

The utility model provides an air pressure control module for microfluidics and a nano-particle synthesis system. The air pressure control module comprises more than two air pressure control assemblies and a control module, each air pressure control assembly comprises an air pump; the input end of the proportional valve is connected to the output end of the air pump; an output line; an air hole is formed in the surge tank; wherein the inlet of the surge tank and the inlet of the output pipeline are connected to the output end of the proportional valve. By means of the air pressure control module for microfluidics, the output air pressure of the air pump can be controlled through the proportional valve; besides, the cavity of the pressure stabilizing tank plays a role in buffering and stabilizing the pressure of the air, when the output air pressure is too large, the area of a channel in the proportional valve is reduced or even the channel is closed, at the moment, the pressure can be released through an air hole formed in the pressure stabilizing tank so as to accelerate the release speed of the air pressure, and the pressure stabilizing effect is better. It is further ensured that the air pressure control module can provide air with stable air pressure.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The application belongs to the technical field of microfluidic nanosynthesis, and particularly relates to a gas pressure control module for microfluidics and a nanoparticle synthesis system. BACKGROUND

[0002] Nanoparticle synthesis technology is a technology frontier in the field of rapidly developing nanotechnology. Its unique size-dependent characteristics make these materials have great advantages in many fields and are irreplaceable. This technology has been widely used in many industries, such as drug delivery, energy and electronics, etc. Nanoparticle synthesis technology is one of the key steps to realize the application of nanoparticles.

[0003] Since the size characteristics of nanoparticles need to be applied in most applications, the size distribution, yield and repeatability of the size of each batch of nanoparticles synthesis are very important parameters in the evaluation of nanoparticle synthesis. One of the traditional methods of nanoparticle synthesis is based on the principle of batch mixing. Specifically, the raw materials for preparing nanoparticles are dissolved in an organic phase or an aqueous phase, and then added to another phase which is not compatible with the aqueous phase or the organic phase, and rapidly mixed in a beaker or other equipment by stirring. However, when using the traditional batch synthesis method (mixing in bulk solution) for large-scale production of nanoparticles, the quality of the particle synthesis is poor, and there are some uncontrollable factors, such as aggregation and isomerization mixing, which result in poor size uniformity and repeatability of the nanoparticles.

[0004] Based on the gas pressure control technology and microfluidic technology, the micro-reactor can realize rapid mixing of micro-reagents, pressure monitoring and reaction time control. Using gas pressure control technology and microfluidic technology for nanoparticle synthesis, the mixing is controlled and uniform, and nanoparticles with uniform size can be produced. At the same time, the repeatability of the physical and chemical properties of the nanoparticles can also be accurately controlled. In addition, by adjusting the microenvironment of nanoparticle synthesis, the size uniformity and repeatability of the nanoparticles can be further improved, and the yield of the nanoparticle preparation process can be improved.

[0005] The existing instruments for nanoparticle synthesis based on microfluidic technology in the market are mainly from Precision Nanosystems Company and Precigenome Company in Canada. The instrument of Precision Nanosystems Company mainly uses a syringe pump to push the two-phase solution of organic phase and aqueous phase into the microfluidic chip for mixing, and collects the synthesized nanoparticles at the outlet end of the microfluidic chip. This instrument realizes very high controllability, uniformity and high repeatability of nanoparticle size. However, due to the use of a syringe pump as the driving force for fluid, there are some inherent shortcomings, such as large volume, slow response speed, low adjustment precision, pulsatility of flow, low sample utilization efficiency, and easy pollution. The pulsatility of flow and low adjustment precision can affect the uniformity of mixing during nanoparticle synthesis, thereby reducing the uniformity of nanoparticles. The syringe pump needs to load reagents into the syringe, which is complex to operate and easy to cause pollution. In addition, the capacity of the syringe is limited, and the instrument needs to be greatly engineered and improved for large-scale production, which is not convenient for direct use in high-throughput production. In addition, using a syringe pump to achieve high-throughput (multiple samples running simultaneously) also has inherent difficulties: when multiple samples are running simultaneously, each sample needs to be equipped with a separate syringe pump, which inevitably leads to a complex system and is not conducive to the expansion of the system to high-throughput. Currently, these devices need to use different designs of microfluidic chips to achieve from small volume (less than 1 ml) to large volume production (more than 1 ml), and different designs of chips often need to adjust different conditions for producing nanoparticles to produce similar nanoparticles. This not only increases the design and production cost, but also increases the technical difficulty of improving the production while maintaining the same performance.

[0006] The instrument of Precigenome Company (patent application number CN202221044491.6) is a device for nanoparticle synthesis based on pressure control and microfluidic mixing technology. This instrument partially compensates for the many shortcomings of the instrument of Precision Nanosystems Company that uses a syringe pump, and can realize nanoparticle synthesis. However, this device has too many gas connections, which brings some additional connection confirmation operations to the customer, and the pressure gauge used in this device is not high enough in precision, is greatly affected by environmental temperature and pressure, and requires a higher use environment. In addition, the small gas buffer on the pipeline previously existed, which caused large fluctuations in pneumatic pressure, resulting in insufficient consistency of synthesized particles, which could not meet the needs of nanoparticle developers for consistency in small volumes. Therefore, a microscale nanoparticle synthesis device based on an integrated high-precision gas pressure controller was developed, which simplified the customer's operation. This device will be suitable for a wider customer group and has higher market application prospects.

[0007] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a gas pressure control module with simple structure and stable pressure in the field of microfluidics. Utility model content

[0008] To solve the problems in the prior art, the application provides a gas pressure control module for microfluidics and a microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system.

[0009] The gas pressure control module for microfluidics comprises two or more gas pressure control components, wherein each gas pressure control component comprises a gas pump, a proportional valve, an output pipeline, and a pressure stabilizing tank provided with a gas hole, wherein the input end of the proportional valve is connected to the output end of the gas pump, the inlet of the pressure stabilizing tank and the inlet of the output pipeline are connected to the output end of the proportional valve.

[0010] Further, the gas pump is a pneumatic diaphragm pump.

[0011] Further, the area equivalent circle diameter of the gas hole is 0.05-0.1 mm.

[0012] Further, the output pipeline is provided with a pressure detection unit.

[0013] Further, the output pipeline is further provided with a flow detection unit.

[0014] The application also provides a microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system, which comprises a gas pressure control module, two or more buffer tanks, a gas pressure distribution plate, and a microfluidic chip, wherein the gas pressure control module is any of the above gas pressure control modules, the inlet of each buffer tank is connected to the outlet of the output pipeline, the inlet of the gas pressure distribution plate is connected to the outlet of each buffer tank, the gas pressure distribution plate is provided with a control valve to control the opening and closing of each outlet, and the inlet of the microfluidic chip is connected to the outlet of the gas pressure distribution plate.

[0015] Further, the microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system further comprises a sealing gasket arranged between the gas pressure distribution plate and the microfluidic chip.

[0016] Further, the microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system further comprises a control module, wherein the control module comprises a controller electrically connected to the proportional valve, the pressure detection unit, and the control valve.

[0017] Further, the control module further comprises an input component for signal input and an output component for signal output, wherein the input component and the output component are electrically connected to the controller.

[0018] Further, the control module comprises a touch display screen as the input component and the output component.

[0019] By the above-mentioned air pressure control module for microfluidics provided in the present application, the output air pressure of the air pump can be controlled by the proportional valve; in addition, the cavity of the pressure stabilizing tank itself plays a role in buffering and stabilizing the air pressure, and when the output air pressure is too large, the channel area in the proportional valve is reduced or even the channel is closed, at this time, the pressure can be released through the air hole to accelerate the release speed of the air pressure, further ensuring that the air pressure control module can provide air with stable air pressure; in addition, the air pressure control module of the present application can be used for continuous air supply, so it can be used for single large batch synthesis of nanoparticles. By the above-mentioned microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system provided in the present embodiment, air can be supplied by the above-mentioned air pressure control module, the provided air first enters the buffer tank to further reduce air pressure fluctuation, and then enters the air pressure distribution plate through the main gas flow channel, and the control valve on the gas distribution channel controls the liquid flow of the first liquid pool and the second liquid pool in an orderly manner through switching, so that the synthesized nanoparticles are stored in the third liquid pool.

[0020] The above description is only a summary of the technical solutions of the present application. In order to make the technical means of the present application more clear and understandable, to the extent that the contents of the specification can be implemented by those skilled in the art, and in order to make the above and other purposes, features and advantages of the present application more obvious and easy to understand, the specific embodiments of the present application are illustrated below. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 : Structure schematic diagram of microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system in an embodiment of the present application;

[0022] Figure 2 : Front view cross-sectional structure schematic diagram of microfluidic chip in an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 3 : Top view cross-sectional structure schematic diagram of microfluidic chip in an embodiment of the present application;

[0024] Figure 4 : Side view structure schematic diagram of microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system in an embodiment of the present application.

[0025] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS:

[0026] 1, air pressure control module; CP, air pump; V1, proportional valve; 11, pressure stabilizing tank; PG, pressure detection unit; F, flow detection unit;

[0027] 2, control module; 21, controller; 22, touch display screen;

[0028] 3. buffer tank;

[0029] 4. air pressure distribution plate; V2, control valve;

[0030] 5. gasket;

[0031] 6. microfluidic chip; 61, first liquid reservoir; 62, second liquid reservoir; 63, third liquid reservoir. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] The following embodiments of the present application are only used to illustrate the specific embodiments of the present application, and these embodiments cannot be understood as the limitation of the present application. Any changes, modifications, substitutions, combinations, simplifications made without departing from the spirit and principles of the present application are considered as equivalent replacement ways, which fall within the protection scope of the present application.

[0033] Those skilled in the art should understand that in the disclosure of the present application, the terms "first", "second", "third", "fourth", "fifth" and the like are only used to distinguish different structures, and do not limit the number, connection relationship and the like of specific structures; in addition, the orientation or position relationship indicated by "longitudinal", "transverse", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer" and the like is based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the drawings, which is only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and does not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, therefore the above terms cannot be understood as the limitation of the present application.

[0034] In the present application, the "area equivalent circle diameter" refers to the diameter of an imaginary circle, the area of which is equal to the area of a certain object (such as the air hole of the present application).

[0035] The present embodiment provides a kind of air pressure control module 1 for microfluidic, as shown in Figure 1 、 Figure 4 , it includes: two or more air pressure control components;Wherein, each air pressure control component includes: air pump CP;Proportional valve V1, the input end of the proportional valve V1 is connected at the output end of the air pump CP;Output pipeline;Pressure stabilizing tank 11, air hole is provided on the pressure stabilizing tank 11;Wherein, the inlet of the pressure stabilizing tank 11 and the inlet of the output pipeline are connected at the output end of the proportional valve V1.

[0036] Regarding the number of air pressure control components, those skilled in the art can appropriately select according to the situation of air pressure distribution plate 4 connected behind air pressure control module 1, such as only one air pressure distribution plate 4 and only two inlets of the air pressure distribution plate 4, then air pressure control module 1 only needs two air pressure control components (i.e. Figure 1(As shown in the figure) When there are multiple air pressure distribution plates 4 or multiple inlets of air pressure distribution plates 4 for multiple microfluidic chips, the number of air pressure control components in the body pressure control module 1 can be increased accordingly, such as 4, 6, 8, 10 or more.

[0037] Regarding the type of air pump CP, those skilled in the art can select an appropriate existing air pump according to the circumstances. In this embodiment, it is specifically a pneumatic diaphragm pump.

[0038] For ease of automated control, the proportional valve V1 in this embodiment is a solenoid valve.

[0039] The air pressure control module provided in this embodiment can control the output air pressure of the air pump CP through the proportional valve V1. When the output air pressure is too high, the internal channel area of ​​the proportional valve V1 can be reduced; when the output air pressure is too low, the internal channel area of ​​the proportional valve V1 can be increased, thereby ensuring that it can provide gas with stable pressure. Secondly, as... Figure 1 As shown, the pressure control component in this embodiment also includes a pressure stabilizing tank 11. First, the cavity of the pressure stabilizing tank itself plays a role in buffering and stabilizing the gas pressure. Second, when the output gas pressure is too high, the channel area inside the proportional valve V1 decreases or even closes the channel. At this time, the pressure in the output pipeline and subsequent connected components decreases slowly. The pressure stabilizing tank in this embodiment is provided with an air hole, so that the pressure can be released through the air hole to accelerate the release speed of the gas pressure, thereby further ensuring that the pressure control module can provide gas with stable pressure. Through numerous experiments conducted by the inventors, it was found that when the diameter of the pores (for non-circular pores, the diameter of the area equivalent circle) is 0.05–0.1 mm, it can effectively ensure a stable output pressure from the pressure control component. During the synthesis of microfluidic nanoparticles, it can effectively release the pressure within the system without causing a rapid pressure drop that could affect product quality. Furthermore, the pressure control module 1 in this embodiment can be used for continuous gas supply, thus enabling the synthesis of nanoparticles in large batches in a single operation. For example, it can achieve the synthesis of nanoparticles with a minimum volume of 10 μL, thereby saving users a significant amount of raw materials and reducing the number of experiments. This is suitable for research on the selection and optimization of nanoparticle synthesis formulations.

[0040] like Figure 1 As shown, a pressure detection unit PG can also be installed on the output pipeline to detect the air pressure in the output pipeline, thereby enabling rapid adjustment of the proportional valve V1 based on the air pressure detected by the pressure detection unit PG. The pressure detection unit PG can be a commonly used barometer; for ease of automated control, in this embodiment, the pressure detection unit PG is a pressure sensor.

[0041] like Figure 1As shown, a flow detection unit F can also be arranged on the output pipeline to detect the gas flow of the output pipeline. When the microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis is completed, the gas flow in the output pipeline will increase, therefore, the flow detection unit F can be used to determine whether the microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis is completed according to the change of the gas flow, so as to facilitate the determination of whether the gas pressure control module continues to provide gas. The flow detection unit F can specifically select a commonly used gas flow meter. In order to facilitate automatic control, the flow detection unit F in the embodiment is a gas flow sensor.

[0042] The embodiment provides an output pressure range of the gas pressure control module 1 for microfluidics, which can be above 0-30 psi, and the accuracy of the pressure value is less than 0.01 psi.

[0043] The embodiment also provides a microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system, which comprises Figures 1 to 4 As shown, the system comprises:

[0044] The above-mentioned gas pressure control module 1;

[0045] Two or more buffer tanks 3, and the inlet of each buffer tank 3 is connected to the outlet of the output pipeline;

[0046] A gas pressure distribution plate 4, the inlet of the gas pressure distribution plate 4 is connected to the outlet of the buffer tank 3, and a control valve V2 is arranged in the gas pressure distribution plate 4 to control the opening and closing of each outlet thereof;

[0047] A microfluidic chip 6, and the inlet of the microfluidic chip 6 is connected to the outlet of the gas pressure distribution plate 4.

[0048] Regarding the buffer tank 3, it mainly plays a buffering role on the gas provided by the gas pressure control module 1, so as to reduce the gas pressure fluctuation, especially the gas pressure fluctuation caused by the opening of the control valve V2 on the gas pressure distribution plate 4.

[0049] As to the gas pressure distribution plate 4, it generally comprises a pair of main gas flow channels (generally a pair of main gas flow channels, i.e. two main gas flow channels), which can be respectively referred to as a first main gas flow channel and a second main gas flow channel. A gas distribution channel is arranged on each of the first main gas flow channel and the second main gas flow channel. One gas distribution channel arranged on the first main gas flow channel and one gas distribution channel arranged on the second main gas flow channel form a gas supply group to supply gas to a pair of liquid storage pools (i.e. a first liquid storage pool 61 and a second liquid storage pool 62 in the following text) on the microfluidic chip 6 for storing raw liquid, so as to synthesize nanoparticles. A control valve V2 is arranged on each gas distribution channel to control a specific step of synthesizing nanoparticles. In order to facilitate automatic control, the control valve V2 in the embodiment is an electromagnetic valve. In addition, a lock catch is arranged on the gas pressure distribution plate 4 in the embodiment, so that the gas pressure distribution plate 4 and the microfluidic chip 6 can be locked when the gas distribution channels of the gas pressure distribution plate 4 are attached to the liquid storage pools of the microfluidic chip 6, so as to ensure stable sealing between the two. As to the form of the lock catch, a person skilled in the art can choose an existing scheme.

[0050] As to the microfluidic chip 6, it generally comprises a plurality of groups of liquid storage pools, each group of liquid storage pools comprising three liquid storage pools, including a first liquid storage pool 61 for storing raw materials, a second liquid storage pool 62, and a third liquid storage pool 63 for storing products (nanoparticles). The liquid storage pools are connected by flow channels. As to the raw materials, they can be organic phase raw materials and inorganic phase raw materials, for example, the first liquid storage pool 61 stores organic phase raw materials, and the second liquid storage pool 62 stores inorganic phase raw materials. In the embodiment, the volume of each liquid storage pool can be 10 uL to 1 mL. In addition, four groups of liquid storage pools are arranged in the embodiment, so that the maximum synthesis volume of the above-mentioned system is 4 ml, and the minimum synthesis volume is 10 uL. Four different formulations of reagents can also be synthesized simultaneously.

[0051] Through the above-mentioned microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system provided by the embodiment, gas supply can be performed by the above-mentioned gas pressure control module 1. The provided gas first enters the buffer tank 3 to further reduce gas pressure fluctuation, and then enters the gas pressure distribution plate 4 through the main gas flow channel. The control valve V2 on the gas distribution channel is switched to orderly control the flow of liquid in the first liquid storage pool 61 and the second liquid storage pool 62 to the third liquid storage pool 63, so that the synthesized nanoparticles are stored in the third liquid storage pool 63.

[0052] In order to ensure the airtightness of the gas pressure distribution plate 4 and the microfluidic chip 6, a sealing gasket 5 is arranged between the gas pressure distribution plate 4 and the microfluidic chip 6. On the basis of the above-mentioned scheme, a person skilled in the art should be able to know that a through hole will be arranged on the sealing gasket between the outlet of the gas distribution channel and the corresponding liquid storage pool to facilitate the flow of gas.

[0053] like Figure 1 As shown, when the pressure control module 1 includes a pressure detection unit, the microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system can also include a control module 2. The control module 2 includes a controller 21, which is electrically connected to the proportional valve V1, the pressure detection unit PG, and the control valve V2, thereby forming a closed-loop controllable pressure control module to achieve overall automated control of the system. Furthermore, since the fluid resistance in the pressure control module 1 is much lower than the flow channel resistance of the microfluidic chip 6 (more than 100 times), the pressure output of the pressure control module 1 is transmitted to the liquid in the storage tank almost instantaneously (less than 1 second). The fluid velocity in the microfluidic chip flow channel and the gas pressure output by the pressure control module 1 are almost in one-to-one correspondence. Simultaneously, the fluid in the microfluidic channel is laminar, so the flow velocity can be predicted and calculated through simple fluid calculations. Therefore, the technical solution of this embodiment can achieve precise control of the fluid velocity in the flow channel of the microfluidic chip through precise control of the gas pressure, thereby achieving precise control of the synthesized nanoparticle size.

[0054] In particular, when the above-mentioned air pressure control module 1 also includes the flow detection unit F, the flow detection unit F is also electrically connected to the controller 21 so that after the synthesis is completed (such as after the flow detected by the flow detection unit F is greater than the preset value), the controller 21 can perform control operations such as stopping the air supply of the air pressure control module 1.

[0055] Regarding the controller, it can be implemented as an existing control chip such as a microcontroller. In this embodiment, it is specifically implemented as an industrial control computer.

[0056] In addition, to facilitate the control of the nanoparticle synthesis system, the control module in this embodiment further includes: an input component for signal input and an output component for signal output; wherein the input component and the output component are electrically connected to the controller. Specifically, in this embodiment, a touch screen 22 is used as the input component and the output component, so that information such as the required gas pressure and the volume of the produced nanoparticle solution can be input through the touch screen 22, and information such as pressure graph data can also be displayed through the touch screen 22.

[0057] Although the embodiments of this application have been described above, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments and application fields described above. The specific embodiments described above are merely illustrative and instructive, and not restrictive. Those skilled in the art, based on the guidance of this specification and without departing from the scope of protection of the claims of this application, can make many other forms, all of which are within the scope of protection claimed in this application.

Claims

1. A pneumatic control module for microfluidics, Characterized in that, It comprises: two or more air pressure control components; Each of the air pressure control components comprises: an air pump; a proportional valve, the input end of which is connected to the output end of the air pump; an output pipeline; a pressure stabilizing tank, which is provided with an air hole; The inlet of the pressure stabilizing tank and the inlet of the output pipeline are connected to the output end of the proportional valve.

2. The air pressure control module of claim 1, wherein The air pump is a pneumatic diaphragm pump.

3. The air pressure control module of claim 1, wherein The area equivalent circle diameter of the air hole is 0.05-0.1 mm.

4. The air pressure control module of claim 1, wherein The output pipeline is provided with a pressure detection unit.

5. The air pressure control module of claim 4, wherein The output pipeline is further provided with a flow detection unit.

6. A microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system, characterized in that, It comprises: an air pressure control module, which is the air pressure control module of any one of claims 1-5; two or more buffer tanks, the inlets of which are respectively connected to the outlets of the output pipelines; an air pressure distribution plate, the inlets of which are respectively connected to the outlets of the buffer tanks, and the air pressure distribution plate is provided with control valves to control the opening and closing of each of its outlets; a microfluidic chip, the inlets of which are respectively connected to the outlets of the air pressure distribution plate.

7. The microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system of claim 6, wherein, It further comprises: a sealing gasket, which is arranged between the air pressure distribution plate and the microfluidic chip.

8. A microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system, characterized in that, It comprises: an air pressure control module, which is the air pressure control module of claim 4 or 5; two or more buffer tanks, the inlets of which are respectively connected to the outlets of the output pipelines; an air pressure distribution plate, the inlets of which are respectively connected to the outlets of the buffer tanks, and the air pressure distribution plate is provided with control valves to control the opening and closing of each of its outlets; The microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system further comprises a control module; The control module comprises: a controller, which is electrically connected to the proportional valve, the pressure detection unit, and the control valve.

9. The microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system of claim 8, wherein The control module further comprises: an input component for signal input; an output component for signal output; The input component and the output component are electrically connected to the controller.

10. The microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis system of claim 9, wherein The control module comprises a touch display screen as the input component and the output component.

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