Microfluidic device for preparing gas-water-oil-solid-raw multiphase multicomponent fluid

Abstract

The invention discloses a micro-fluidic device for preparing gas-water-oil-solid-raw multiphase multicomponent fluid, a micro-fluidic chip mainly comprises a micro-fluidic chip substrate layer, a thin film layer and a micro-fluidic chip upper layer, the substrate layer is provided with a plurality of multi-group sub-runners and a mixing runner connected with the plurality of multi-group sub-runners; the upper layer is provided with a plurality of multi-group sub-runners and storage pools, the thin film layer at the junction of the substrate layer runner and the upper layer runner is provided with a nozzle, and the injection pressure and the flow velocity are adjusted through an injection pump or a control system so as to dynamically adjust the mixed flow runner to prepare foam fluids with various diameters, so that the preparation of a multi-phase multi-group sub-runner is realized; dynamic adjustment of foam diameter, volume and proportion in multiphase and multicomponent fluids such as gas-water-oil-solid-production and the like and complex physical and chemical processes such as flow, mass transfer, heat transfer, reaction, erosion and precipitation of multiphase and multicomponent fluids are realized. The device can provide a basic test device for research in the fields of hydrology, oil gas, mine, carbon sequestration and the like.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical fields of hydrology, oil and gas, geology and mining, and carbon sequestration, and more specifically to a microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-biomass multi-phase multi-component fluid. Background Art

[0002] Multiphase fluid refers to a fluid system composed of two or more fluids or solid particles with different chemical components and different physical states. In gas-water-oil-solid-biomass multiphase fluid, gas, water, and oil are fluid phases, and solid and biological substances are particle phases or discrete phases. In this multiphase and multicomponent fluid system, five phases of gas, water, oil, solid, and biomass exist simultaneously, and there are obvious interfaces between the phases; during the flow process, mass transfer, heat transfer, and phase change may occur between the components, resulting in dynamic changes in fluid properties. At the same time, the diversity of components and their interactions make it difficult to describe the behavior and flow characteristics of the fluid with a simple model, so the research on gas-water-oil-solid-biomass multiphase and multicomponent fluids still faces many challenges.

[0003] Microfluidic chip devices, also known as chip labs, are scientific and technological devices that manipulate fluids in micrometer-scale space. Microfluidic chips look like microscope slides, but the internal channels are micrometer-scale. These microchannels are usually connected to external pumps to drive nanoliter fluids into microchannels through microporous tubes. Microfluidic chips use the surface tension of the inner wall of the microchannel and the design of the flow channel geometry to achieve precise manipulation of the fluid by controlling the speed and direction of the fluid flow, thereby completing operations such as liquid separation, mixing, and transmission. Microfluidic chip technology has a wide range of applications in many fields: For example, in the field of biomedicine, microfluidic chip technology can be used for nucleic acid separation and quantification, DNA sequencing, gene mutation and gene differential expression analysis, protein screening, drug research, etc.; in the field of new drug synthesis and screening, microfluidic chip technology can provide a high-throughput drug screening platform to reduce the cost of drug screening; in the field of environmental monitoring, microfluidic chip technology plays a role in water quality monitoring, air pollutant detection, etc.

[0004] At present, due to the limitation of experimental conditions, there are few related experiments on gas-water-oil-solid-biogas multiphase and multicomponent fluids, and they are mainly focused on the study of water-gas two-phase seepage, while there are no reports on the preparation and research of multiphase fluids under the coexistence of multiple phases and multiple components. At the same time, for the fields of hydrology, oil and gas, geology and mining, and carbon sequestration, it is of great significance to develop preparation devices and methods for gas-water-oil-solid-biogas multiphase and multicomponent fluids. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of this, the present invention provides a microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multi-phase multi-component fluid.

[0006] To achieve the above object, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0007] A microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid, characterized in that it comprises: a microfluidic chip base layer, a film layer and a microfluidic chip upper layer;

[0008] The thin film layer is arranged between the microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer;

[0009] A plurality of continuous phase flow channels and mixed flow channels are provided on the base layer of the microfluidic chip, wherein the continuous phase flow channel has an inlet, the outlet of the continuous phase flow channel is connected to the inlet of the mixed flow channel, and the mixed flow channel has an outlet;

[0010] A plurality of discrete phase flow channels are arranged on the upper layer of the microfluidic chip, each of the discrete phase flow channels has an inlet, and a storage tank is arranged at the end of the discrete phase flow channel;

[0011] The film layer is provided with a nozzle at the intersection of the continuous phase flow channel on the microfluidic chip base layer and the discrete phase flow channel on the upper layer of the microfluidic chip.

[0012] Preferably, the microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer are made of hard PDMS material, and the thin film layer is made of soft PDMS, PET or PC material.

[0013] Furthermore, the mass ratio of the main agent to the curing agent in the soft PDMS is 1:25-1:10.

[0014] Preferably, the microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer are manufactured using a mold method, and the continuous phase flow channel, mixed flow channel, discrete phase flow channel and storage tank are manufactured by soft lithography technology or nanoimprint technology, and the thin film layer is manufactured by spin coating using a spin coater.

[0015] Preferably, the thickness of the microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer is 0.2mm-10mm, the thickness of the film layer, the width and height of the flow channel are 1μm-100μm, the width and height of the storage tank are 1μm-20μm, and the nozzle size is 0.001μm-10μm.

[0016] Preferably, the film layer is bonded to the microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer by plasma technology.

[0017] Preferably, the nozzle is rectangular, circular or elliptical.

[0018] It can be seen from the above technical solutions that, compared with the prior art, the present invention discloses a microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid, which has the following beneficial effects:

[0019] The present invention can inject multi-component fluids of different proportions into a microfluidic chip through multiple channels to form a multi-phase and multi-component mixed fluid containing gas-water-oil-solid-biomass. The present invention has a simple structure, does not require complex processing technology and expensive equipment, can adjust the injection pressure and flow rate through an injection pump or a control system to achieve dynamic adjustment of the mixed flow channel to prepare foam fluids of various diameters, and combine with other nozzles to achieve multi-phase multi-component fluid preparation, thereby achieving dynamic adjustment of different phases and different component proportions containing complex foam forms in the mixed fluid, and at the same time, the ability to carry solid particles and biological matrices or other phase fluids can be considered; and in the experiment, the dynamic adjustment of foam diameter, volume and proportion in multi-phase and multi-component fluids such as gas-water-oil-solid-biomass and the complex physical and chemical processes such as flow-mass transfer-heat transfer-reaction-erosion and precipitation of multi-phase and multi-components are achieved, so as to achieve high-precision control of complex physical and chemical processes of multi-phase and multi-component fluids. The present device and method can provide a basic experimental device for research in the fields of hydrology, oil and gas, geology and mining, and carbon sequestration. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on the provided drawings without paying creative work.

[0021] Figure 1 This is a structural perspective view of a microfluidic chip for preparing gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase and multicomponent fluids in Example 1;

[0022] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a multi-phase and multi-component microfluidic chip provided in Example 1 of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of nozzle A of the multi-phase and multi-component microfluidic chip provided in Example 1 of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 4 Schematic diagram of nozzle B of the multi-phase and multi-component microfluidic chip provided in Example 1 of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the preparation of multiphase and multicomponent fluids in the method for preparing gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase and multicomponent microfluids on a microfluidic chip according to Example 1 of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The technical solution of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0027] Example 1

[0028] As attached Figure 1-4 As shown, the microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multi-component fluid in this embodiment comprises: a microfluidic chip base layer 10, a thin film layer 11 and a microfluidic chip upper layer 12; the thin film layer 11 is arranged between the microfluidic chip base layer 10 and the microfluidic chip upper layer 12;

[0029] The microfluidic chip substrate layer 10 is provided with a plurality of continuous phase flow channels (two are provided in this embodiment, namely 1 and 3) and a mixed flow channel 9, the continuous phase flow channel 1 (or 3) has an inlet, the outlet of the continuous phase flow channel 1 (or 3) is connected to the inlet of the mixed flow channel 9, and the mixed flow channel 9 has an outlet;

[0030] A plurality of discrete phase flow channels are provided on the upper layer 12 of the microfluidic chip (two are provided in the present embodiment, namely 2 and 4), the discrete phase flow channel 2 (or 4) has an inlet, and a storage tank is provided at the end of the discrete phase flow channel 2 (or 4) (the discrete phase flow channel 2 corresponds to the storage tank 8, and the discrete phase flow channel 4 corresponds to the storage tank 7); the thin film layer 11 is provided with a nozzle 5 (or 6) at the intersection of the continuous phase flow channel 1 (or 3) on the microfluidic chip base layer 10 and the discrete phase flow channel 2 (or 4) of the upper layer 12 of the microfluidic chip.

[0031] The microfluidic chip base layer 10 and the microfluidic chip upper layer 12 are made of hard PDMS, and the film layer 11 is made of soft PDMS. The mass ratio of the main agent to the curing agent in the soft PDMS is 1:25-1:10.

[0032] The thickness of the microfluidic chip base layer 10 and the microfluidic chip upper layer 12 is 0.2mm-10mm, the thickness, flow channel width and height of the film layer 11 are 1μm-100μm, the width and height of the storage tank 7 or 8 are 1μm-20μm, and the size of the nozzle 5 or 6 is 0.001μm-10μm.

[0033] The preparation of microfluidic chips can be carried out in the following specific steps:

[0034] (1) Use computer-aided design (CAD) software to design and draw the flow channel graphics and main body graphics of the microfluidic chip. The size and shape of the microfluidic chip and the flow channel must be in accordance with the required design requirements;

[0035] (2) Preparation of microfluidic chip base layer mold, microfluidic chip upper layer mold, and materials for each layer of the microfluidic chip used for soft lithography;

[0036] (3) Using the materials prepared in the previous step, the microfluidic chip base layer (hard PDMS), the microfluidic chip upper layer (hard PDMS), the microchannel (hard PDMS) and the microfluidic chip thin film layer (soft PDMS) are prepared in sequence;

[0037] (4) Spin coating the prepared soft PDMS on a high-speed spin coater to make the film layer uniform in thickness, and use etching to process the film layer at the specified position to make the nozzle meet the requirements. Among them, the main function of soft PDMS is to bond the glass slide to form the microchannel of the microfluidic chip. Compared with hard PDMS, soft PDMS has greater elasticity and fluidity, which makes it possible to control the size of the generated oil droplets or bubbles when the discrete fluid changes the injection pressure and flow rate;

[0038] (5) Place the microfluidic chip components prepared in the previous step into a plasma cleaning machine for treatment and then take them out;

[0039] (6) Bond the components of the microfluidic chip processed in the previous step in the order of the designed structure, and then place them in an incubator for 10-15 minutes. Take them out after the time is up. At this time, the microfluidic chip is fully bonded;

[0040] (7) Place the bonded microfluidic chip in a high-temperature incubator to harden the film for 20 minutes before taking it out.

[0041] In the specific implementation process, the continuous phase flow channel 1 serves as the phase three flow channel, the continuous phase flow channel 3 serves as the phase four flow channel, the discrete phase flow channel 2 serves as the phase two flow channel, and the discrete phase flow channel 4 serves as the phase one flow channel; phase one is the oil phase (independently existing), phase two is the gas phase (independently existing), phase three is the water phase (coexisting with solid particles and biological matrix), and phase four is the water phase (independently existing).

[0042] First, solid particles and biological matrix are placed in a stirred tank and the injection pump is turned on, and the water phase is introduced into the stirred tank for stirring to obtain phase three;

[0043] The injection pump or control system is turned on to inject the independent water phase in phase state 4 into the continuous phase flow channels 1 and 3 in the microfluidic chip to flush the flow channels of the microfluidic chip; the stirring kettle is turned on to inject phase state 3 into the continuous phase flow channel 1; at the same time, the injection pump or control system is turned on to inject the independent oil phase and gas phase in phase state 1 and phase state 2 into the discrete phase flow channels 2 and 4. Among them, the storage tanks 7 and 8 can temporarily store phase state 1 and phase state 2 to increase the pressure in the flow channel. When the pressure reaches a certain level, the nozzles 5 and 6 can prepare phase state 1 and phase state 2 (oil phase and gas phase) into oil droplets and bubbles with adjustable size and generation rate, thereby preparing a multi-phase and multi-component fluid containing gas-water-oil-solid-gas in the mixed flow channel 9.

[0044] In this specification, each embodiment is described in a progressive manner, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments. The same or similar parts between the embodiments can be referred to each other. For the device disclosed in the embodiment, since it corresponds to the method disclosed in the embodiment, the description is relatively simple, and the relevant parts can be referred to the method part.

[0045] The above description of the disclosed embodiments enables one skilled in the art to implement or use the present invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be apparent to one skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention will not be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but rather to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid, characterized in that: include: Microfluidic chip base layer, film layer and microfluidic chip upper layer; The thin film layer is arranged between the microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer; A plurality of continuous phase flow channels and mixed flow channels are provided on the base layer of the microfluidic chip, wherein the continuous phase flow channel has an inlet, the outlet of the continuous phase flow channel is connected to the inlet of the mixed flow channel, and the mixed flow channel has an outlet; A plurality of discrete phase flow channels are arranged on the upper layer of the microfluidic chip, each of the discrete phase flow channels has an inlet, and a storage tank is arranged at the end of the discrete phase flow channel; The film layer is provided with a nozzle at the intersection of the continuous phase flow channel on the microfluidic chip base layer and the discrete phase flow channel on the upper layer of the microfluidic chip.

2. A microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid according to claim 1, characterized in that: The microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer are made of hard PDMS material, and the film layer is made of soft PDMS, PET or PC material.

3. A microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid according to claim 2, characterized in that: The mass ratio of the main agent to the curing agent in the soft PDMS is 1:25-1:

10.

4. A microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid according to claim 1, characterized in that: The microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer are manufactured by a mold method, and the continuous phase flow channel, mixed flow channel, discrete phase flow channel and storage tank are manufactured by soft lithography technology or nanoimprint technology. The thin film layer is manufactured by spin coating using a spin coater.

5. The microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid according to claim 1, characterized in that: The thickness of the microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer is 0.2mm-10mm, the thickness of the film layer, the width and height of the flow channel are 1μm-100μm, the width and height of the storage tank are 1μm-20μm, and the size of the nozzle is 0.001μm-10μm.

6. A microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid according to claim 1, characterized in that: The film layer is bonded to the microfluidic chip base layer and the microfluidic chip upper layer by plasma technology.

7. A microfluidic device for preparing a gas-water-oil-solid-organic multiphase multicomponent fluid according to claim 1, characterized in that: The nozzle is rectangular, circular or elliptical.

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