Microfluidic flow in printed fracture channel

• Project/Area Number: 19F19329
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 外国
• Review Section: Basic Section 13040:Biophysics, chemical physics and soft matter physics-related
• Research Institution: Kyoto University
• Principal Investigator: Sivaniah Easan 京都大学, 高等研究院, 教授 (10711658)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): GIBBONS ANDREW 京都大学, 高等研究院, 外国人特別研究員
• Project Period (FY): 2019-10-11 – 2022-03-31
• Project Status: Completed (Fiscal Year 2021)
• Budget Amount: ¥2,200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,200,000); Fiscal Year 2021: ¥700,000 (Direct Cost: ¥700,000); Fiscal Year 2020: ¥800,000 (Direct Cost: ¥800,000); Fiscal Year 2019: ¥700,000 (Direct Cost: ¥700,000)
• Keywords: Paper submitted / Water flow in OM film / Electrophoresis / OM films on aluminium / Large image on OM film / Maskless printing of OM / Expanded film size of OM / Microfluidic flow in OM / Improved OM on plastic / Shared OM with community

Outline of Research at the Start

A method for controlling microstructure in polymers was recently discovered, known as the Organized Microfibrillation (OM). This process uses light to precisely create holes within a polymer film which results in colour. With the OM process designs can be made in different polymers.

The formation of holes due to the OM process allows liquids to flow within a polymer film, however the nature of the flow is not yet understood. The goal of this project is to study the liquid flow within OM designed films so that the process can be used for microfluidic applications in the future.

Outline of Annual Research Achievements

In the final stages of the project, ending 2021, I began a collaboration with a Genetics research group to help develop the Organized Microfibrillation process for microfluidics. Up until this point I had difficulty getting water based solutions into the porous OM polymer films. Minor success was achieved with common additives and surfactants. With this new collaboration we were successfully able to identify some chemicals that enabled the flow of water based solutions in my OM channels. With this breakthrough, we were able to achieve other milestones with the OM films. Relevant biological materials, such as proteins and saccharides could enter the channels and could be tracked by fluorescent microscope. Finally we were able to achieve separation of biological materials with differing molecular weights, including separation of proteins and saccharaides, and separation of insulin and inert SARS-COV2 capsid. Separation was achieved by making OM channels with differing porosity such that larger molecules were blocked by the pores. These achievements have been included in a paper that was submitted to Nature Communications.

With the same collaborators I also worked on how to move liquids through OM films without capillary action. A weakness of OM for microfluidics is the lack of pumping capability. During this time I tried applying electrophoresis to my OM films. I and my collaborators explored different experimental setups and conditions and were able to achieve electrophoretic flow preliminary experiments.

Research Progress Status

令和3年度が最終年度であるため、記入しない。

Strategy for Future Research Activity

令和3年度が最終年度であるため、記入しない。

Research Products

• [Journal Article] Structural Colour Enhanced Microfluidics (2022)
  • Author(s): Detao Qin, Andrew Gibbons, Masateru Ito, Sangamithirai Subramanian Parimalam, Handong Jiang, H. Enis Karahan, Behnam Ghalei, Daisuke Yamaguchi, Ganesh Namasivayam Pandian, Easan Sivaniah.
  • Journal Title: Nature Communications Volume: Not known yet
  • Peer Reviewed / Int'l Joint Research