Sliding Removable Coaxial Capillary Microfluidic Chip
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing design and preparation process of coaxial glass capillary microfluidic chips face challenges in accurately aligning capillaries, making them prone to failure and requiring frequent replacement due to disturbances and misalignment, which complicates the production of core-shell microcapsules.
Innovation Solution
A sliding removable coaxial capillary microfluidic chip design utilizing 3D printing technology with a sliding groove structure allows for accurate coaxial alignment and adjustable capillary distance, enabling repeated use and simplifying the assembly process by reducing the need for epoxy glue and minimizing practice requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional epoxy glue fixing method is used to fix circular capillaries in square capillary, then the capillaries are firmly fixed, but the chip cannot be reused when blocked and the relative distance cannot be adjusted
Solution Approach 1:
The chip is divided into modular components: a reusable square capillary body and separate circular capillaries that can be independently removed and reinstalled. This segmentation enables the chip to be disassembled for cleaning and reuse, eliminating the waste associated with traditional glued-fixed chips.
Solution Approach 2:
The circular capillaries are designed to be dynamically adjustable within the square capillary. The relative distance and positioning of circular capillaries can be modified by removing and reinserting them at different positions, providing flexibility for different experimental requirements while maintaining firm fixation through the groove structure.
2Manufacturing precision
If manual alignment practice is used to align two circular capillaries coaxially in square capillary, then the capillaries can be positioned, but the manufacture is complicated and easy to fail requiring frequent replacement
Solution Approach 1:
Alignment grooves are pre-formed in the square capillary body at precise positions and angles. These pre-prepared grooves guide the circular capillaries into correct coaxial alignment during assembly, eliminating the need for time-consuming manual alignment practice and reducing manufacturing failures.
Solution Approach 2:
The alignment grooves act as intermediary structures that mediate between the square capillary body and circular capillaries. These grooves provide mechanical guidance and constraint, ensuring accurate coaxial positioning without requiring skilled manual operation or complex alignment tools.
3Reliability
If circular capillaries are fixed with epoxy glue, then the structure is stable, but when blocked by foreign matter the entire chip must be scrapped and cannot be cleaned for reuse
Solution Approach 1:
The circular capillaries are extracted from the permanent fixed structure and made removable through the groove interface design. This allows the circular capillaries to be taken out for cleaning or replacement when blocked by foreign matter, while the square capillary body remains intact and reusable, significantly reducing waste.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of discarding the entire chip when blocked, only the contaminated circular capillaries are removed and discarded or cleaned separately. The main square capillary body is recovered and reused multiple times, reducing material waste and manufacturing costs while maintaining structural stability through the groove fixation design.
Data Source
AI summary
A sliding removable coaxial capillary microfluidic chip and a preparation method therefor. The chip comprises a substrate which has a hole as a window; an alignment platform I and II are respectively fixed on both sides of the window, and the alignment platform I is internally provided with a circular groove I and a square groove I formed successively on the same axis; the alignment platform II is internally provided with a circular groove II and a square groove II formed successively on the same axis; both ends of a square capillary are respectively placed in the square groove I and II, one circular capillary enters the square groove I through the circular groove I, one end of another circular capillary is placed in a sliding platform, and the other end slides through the sliding platform and enters the square groove II through the circular groove II.