Durable open microfluidic chip, method of manufacture and use

Abstract

The application discloses an open micro-fluidic chip, and relates to the technical field of open micro-fluidic chips, which comprises a base film made of a hydrophobic elastomer material, wherein the base film comprises a stretching part and a clamping part; a groove is arranged on the stretching part, and the sidewall and the bottom of the groove are provided with a hydrophilic layer; the clamping part is clamped, the stretching part is stretched along a single axis, and the groove is obtained by ablation; the stretching part is released to a relaxed state, the width of the groove along the stretching direction is reduced, and the groove enters a protection state; the stretching part is stretched along the single axis to the stretching state in the ablation, the width of the groove along the stretching direction is equal to the width in the ablation, and the groove enters a working state. The micro-fluidic chip prepared by stretching the base film along the single axis can be released by simple stretching, can be switched between the working mode and the protection mode, can meet the demand of general open micro-fluidic chips, and has the protection function for the open micro-fluidic chip.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of open microfluidic chip, in particular to a durable open microfluidic chip, a preparation method and application thereof. BACKGROUND

[0002] Microfluidic chip technology is widely used in real life, among which, the open microfluidic chip has the characteristics of easy sample acquisition and simple preparation method, and has attracted extensive attention from researchers. However, the problem of not being resistant to wear limits its development and application.

[0003] In the exploration of the durability of functional structures or coatings, one strategy is to adjust the surface roughness of the material. For example, by introducing discrete microstructures or layered structures to buffer or shield the coating; another strategy is to choose functional materials, such as using elastic materials, fully functional materials or strong adhesion materials, etc., to disperse the wear pressure by deformation, to maintain the function or to strengthen the adhesion between the coating and the substrate by exposing parts similar to the chemical composition of the coating. This can bring a certain degree of improvement to the robustness of functional structures or coatings. However, the former will bring new challenges to the preparation process, and in addition, the debris and other impurities generated after wear will also cause pollution or blockage problems. The latter mainly relies on the particularity of the material, and in addition, there is no high-surface-energy bulk material in real life.

[0004] Another strategy is to consider the mechanical durability and functional characteristics separately, by separately manufacturing a microstructure frame, which is attached around the functional nanostructure as "armor" to resist wear. The frame can prevent abrasive materials larger than the frame size from removing functional surface structures or coatings. This method brings better mechanical wear resistance and stability, but requires separate design and preparation of a suitable microstructure frame, and also cannot prevent small foreign matter from entering the microchannel, i.e. it does not have anti-pollution properties.

[0005] The durability problem of open microfluidic chips has not been effectively solved, and there is an urgent need for mechanical stability design and processing strategies to enable practical application in real harsh environments. SUMMARY

[0006] In order to solve at least one of the above technical problems, a durable open microfluidic chip is developed, and the present application provides a durable open microfluidic chip, a preparation method and application thereof.

[0007] In one aspect, the present application provides a durable open microfluidic chip, comprising:

[0008] A base film made of a hydrophobic elastomer material, the base film comprising a stretching portion and a clamping portion.

[0009] A groove is arranged on the stretching part, and the sidewall and the bottom of the groove are provided with a hydrophilic layer.

[0010] The stretching part is clamped by the clamping part, and is stretched along a single axis to ablate the groove; the stretching part is released to a relaxed state, and the width of the groove along the stretching direction is reduced to enter a protection state; the stretching part is stretched along a single axis to the stretching state at the time of ablation, and the width of the groove along the stretching direction is equal to the width at the time of ablation to enter a working state.

[0011] Optionally, the groove is provided with a plurality of grooves.

[0012] Optionally, the groove is linear and perpendicular to the stretching direction of the base film.

[0013] Optionally, the groove is Y-shaped and symmetrically arranged perpendicular to the stretching direction of the base film.

[0014] Optionally, the base film is a silica gel film or PDMS.

[0015] Optionally, the thickness of the base film is 1-5 mm.

[0016] In a second aspect, the application provides a preparation method of the durable open microfluidic chip, comprising the following steps:

[0017] S1, a base film is cut to obtain a clamping part, and a stretching part is stretched along a single axis by a clamp;

[0018] S2, a groove is ablated on the stretching part according to a designed path;

[0019] S3, a hydrophilic reagent is used to treat the sidewall and the bottom of the groove to form a hydrophilic layer.

[0020] Optionally, in S2, femtosecond laser or carbon dioxide laser is used for ablation.

[0021] Optionally, in S3, the hydrophilic reagent is filled in the groove to cover the sidewall and the bottom of the groove, and air blowing drying is used to form the hydrophilic layer.

[0022] In a third aspect, the application provides applications of the durable open microfluidic chip in biochemical reaction analysis and medical detection fields.

[0023] In summary, the application has at least one of the following beneficial technical effects:

[0024] The base film of the application is made of a hydrophobic elastomer material, and the groove is obtained by ablation in a stretched state, and used as a microfluidic channel; after the stress of the base film is released, the width of the groove is reduced, the size and probability of impurities entering the groove are reduced, and the groove is protected; when using the microfluidic chip, only uniaxial stretching is needed according to the stretching direction of the base film during ablation, and the stretching length is the same as that during ablation, so that the groove on the base film will show the same lines as ablation, thereby operating as a microfluidic channel. The microfluidic chip prepared by uniaxial stretching of the base film of the application can be switched between working mode and protection mode by simple stretching release, which not only meets the needs of general open microfluidic chips, but also has the protection function of open microfluidic chips. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0025] Figure 1 The base film in the normal state in Example 1;

[0026] Figure 2 The base film in the stretched state in Example 1;

[0027] Figure 3 The base film in the stretched state in Example 1 etched with a groove;

[0028] Figure 4 The base film before and after releasing the stress of the base film when the chip enters the protection state in Example 1;

[0029] Figure 5 The relaxed state of the chip in Example 1;

[0030] Figure 6 The stretched state of the chip before and after entering the working state in Example 1;

[0031] Figure 7 The working state of the chip in Example 2;

[0032] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS: 1, base film; 11, stretching part; 12, clamping part; 2, groove. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] The application will be further described in detail below in combination with the drawings and examples.

[0034] The application designs an open microfluidic chip, which comprises:

[0035] The base film 1 is made of a hydrophobic elastomer material, and the base film 1 comprises a stretching part 11 and a clamping part 12;

[0036] The groove 2 is arranged on the stretching part 11, and the side wall and the bottom of the groove 2 are provided with a hydrophilic layer;

[0037] Clamp the clamping portion 12, stretch the stretching portion 11 along the single axis, and ablate to obtain the groove 2; release the stretching portion 11 to the relaxed state, and the width of the groove 2 along the stretching direction is reduced, and the protection state is entered; stretch the stretching portion 11 along the single axis to the stretching state when ablation, the width of the groove 2 along the stretching direction is equal to the width when ablation, and the working state is entered.

[0038] The open microfluidic chip of the present application is prepared by the following method, comprising the following steps:

[0039] S1, cutting to obtain the base film 1, clamping the clamping portion 12 with a clamp, and uniaxially stretching the stretching portion 11;

[0040] S2, ablate to obtain the groove 2 on the stretching portion 11 according to the designed path;

[0041] S3, using a hydrophilic reagent to treat the side wall and the bottom of the groove 2 to form a hydrophilic layer.

[0042] The open microfluidic chip of the present application can be applied in the fields of biochemical reaction analysis and medical detection.

[0043] The present application exemplarily lists the following embodiments, and the hydrophilic reagent in the following embodiments is exemplarily adopted: microfluidic chip surface hydrophilic reagent, purchased from Wuhan Jieguan Biotechnology Co., Ltd., and the main components are TiO2 and PEG. Specific embodiments

[0045] Embodiment 1

[0046] As shown in Figure 1 , the base film 1 is selected as a 2mm thick silica gel film, which is cut into a 25mm*80mm strip, wherein the clamping portion 12 is located at both ends of the length direction of the base film 1, each occupying 12mm, and the length of the middle stretching portion 11 is 56mm.

[0047] As shown in Figure 2 , the clamping portion 12 at both ends of the silica gel film in the relaxed state is fixed on the single-axis stretching table, the surface protective film is removed, and it is stretched to 126mm (only including the stretching portion 11), and the stretching rate is 125%.

[0048] As shown in Figure 3 , femtosecond laser processing is adopted to ablate on the silica gel film in the above stretching state, the laser power is 50mW, the scanning speed is 20mm / s, the scanning times are 16 times, and the linear groove 2 is ablated on the stretching portion 11.

[0049] The processing obtains: the length of the groove is 5mm, the distance between adjacent grooves is 300μm, the width of the groove is 260μm, and the depth of the groove is 138μm.

[0050] The hydrophilic reagent is dropped into the groove 2 to fill the groove 2, and then the liquid in the groove 2 is evaporated by the air drying method to form a hydrophilic layer on the side wall and the bottom of the groove 2.

[0051] As shown in Figure 4 , the base film 1 is released, the stretching part 11 is in a relaxed state, and an open microfluidic chip is obtained, as shown in Figure 5 . The open microfluidic chip after release: the length of the groove is 6 mm, the distance between adjacent grooves is 133 μm, the width of the groove is 50 μm, and the depth of the groove is 15 μm.

[0052] The open microfluidic chip prepared in this embodiment is used as shown in Figure 6 , the stretching part 11 is uniaxially stretched to 126 mm (i.e. the state of stretching during ablation), and then normally used. When not in use, the base film 1 is released to shrink to a relaxed state, as shown in Figure 4 , so as to enter a protection state to protect the groove 2. Figure 5

[0053] Example 2

[0054] The difference between this embodiment and example 1 is that the groove 2 in this embodiment is Y-shaped and symmetrically arranged perpendicular to the stretching direction of the base film (1).

[0055] As shown in Figure 7 , the working state (i.e. the stretched state) of the open microfluidic chip in this embodiment.

[0056] The above are preferred embodiments of the present application, and are not intended to limit the protection scope of the present application, therefore: any equivalent changes made according to the structure, shape, principle of the present application shall be covered within the protection scope of the present application.​

Claims

1. A durable open microfluidic chip, characterized in that, The utility model relates to a durable open microfluidic chip, comprising: a base film (1) made of a hydrophobic elastomer material, the base film (1) comprising a stretching part (11) and a clamping part (12); a groove (2) provided on the stretching part (11), the side wall and the bottom of the groove (2) being provided with a hydrophilic layer; clamping the clamping part (12) and uniaxially stretching the stretching part (11) to obtain the groove (2) by ablation; releasing the stretching part (11) to a relaxed state, the width of the groove (2) in the stretching direction decreases, and the groove (2) enters a protection state; uniaxially stretching the stretching part (11) to the stretching state at the time of ablation, the width of the groove (2) in the stretching direction is equal to the width at the time of ablation, and the groove (2) enters a working state.

2. The durable open microfluidic chip of claim 1, wherein, The groove (2) is provided with a plurality of grooves.

3. The durable open microfluidic chip of claim 1, wherein, The groove (2) is linear and perpendicular to the stretching direction of the base film (1).

4. The durable open microfluidic chip of claim 1, wherein, The groove (2) is Y-shaped and symmetrically arranged perpendicular to the stretching direction of the base film (1).

5. The durable open microfluidic chip of claim 1, wherein, The base film (1) is made of silica gel film or PDMS.

6. The durable open microfluidic chip of claim 1, wherein, The thickness of the base film (1) is 1-5 mm.

7. A method for fabricating the durable open microfluidic chip of claim 1, wherein, The utility model relates to a method for manufacturing a durable open microfluidic chip, comprising the following steps: S1, cutting a base film (1), clamping the clamping part (12) with a clamp, and uniaxially stretching the stretching part (11); S2, ablation on the stretching part (11) according to the designed path to obtain the groove (2); S3, using a hydrophilic reagent to treat the side wall and the bottom of the groove (2) to form a hydrophilic layer.

8. The preparation method according to claim 7, characterized in that, In S2, femtosecond laser or carbon dioxide laser is used for ablation.

9. The preparation method according to claim 7, characterized in that, In S3, the hydrophilic reagent is filled in the groove (2) to cover the side wall and the bottom of the groove (2), air blowing drying method is used for drying to form the hydrophilic layer.

10. The application of the durable open microfluidic chip of claim 1 in the field of biochemical reaction analysis and medical detection.

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