• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
• /
• v.32 no.9
• /
• pp.720-727
• /
• 2008

Microfluidic single chip integrating thermopneumatic micropump and micro check valve are developed. The micropump and micorvalve are made of biocompatible materials, glass and PDMS, so as to be applicable to the biochip. By using the passive-type check valve, backward flow and fluid leakage are blocked and flow control is stable and precise. The chip is composed of three PDMS layers and a glass substrate. In the chip, flow channel and pump chamber were made on the PDMS layers by the replica molding technique and pump heater was made on the glass substrate by Cr/Au deposition. Diameter of the pump chamber is 7 mm and the width and depth of the channel are 200 and $180{\mu}m$, respectively. The PDMS layers chip and the heater deposited glass chip are combined by a jig and a clamp for pumping operation, and they are separable so that PDMS chip is used as a disposable but the heater chip is able to be used repeatedly. Pumping performance was simulated by CFD software and investigated experimentally. The performance was the best when the duty ratio of the applied voltage to the heater was 33%.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
• /
• 2013.08a
• /
• pp.274.2-274.2
• /
• 2013

We described a simple and efficient fabrication method for generating microfluidic channels with a circular-cross sectional geometry by exploiting the reflow phenomenon of a thick positive photoresist. Initial rectangular shaped positive photoresist micropatterns on a silicon wafer, which were fabricated by a conventional photolithography process, were converted into a half-circular shape by tuning the temperature to around $105^{\circ}C$. Through optimization of the reflow conditions, we could obtain a perfect circular micropattern of the positive photoresist, and control the diameter in a range from 100 to 400 ${\mu}m$. The resultant convex half-circular photoresist was used as a template for fabricating a concave polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) through a replica molding process, and a circular PDMS microchannel was produced by bonding two half-circular PDMS layers. A variety of channel dimensions and patterns can be easily prepared, including straight, S-curve, X-, Y-, and T-shapes to mimic an in vivo vascular network. To inform an endothelial cell layer, we cultured primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) inside circular PDMS microchannels, and demonstrated successful cell adhesion, proliferation, and alignment along the channel.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
• /
• v.32 no.2
• /
• pp.67-74
• /
• 2023

A microfluidic paper-based analytical device (µPAD) is proposed for the selective detection of ammonia in water by using the modified Berthelot reagent and a fluidic channel consisting of hollow paper. The modified Berthelot reagents were uniformly dispersed in cyclohexane and then immobilized in a detection zone of the µPAD. The loading position of the reagents and the type of a sample flow channel were optimized to achieve a sensitive ammonia detection within a short analytical time. The NH₃ µPAD exhibits a linear colorimetric response to the concentration of ammonia dissolved in water in the range of 1-100 mg L^-1, and its limit-of-detection is 1.75 mg L^-1. In addition, the colorimetric response was not influenced by the addition of 100 mg L^-1 nitrogen containing compounds (sodium nitrate, sodium nitrite, uric acid, hydroxylamine, butylamine, diethylamine) or inorganic salts (NaCl, Na₂HPO₄), presenting the enough selectivity in the detection of water-dissolved ammonia against possible interferents.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
• /
• v.33 no.5
• /
• pp.338-343
• /
• 2024

The measurement of pH is of significant importance in chemistry, life sciences, and environmental monitoring. Unlike conventional pH sensors that utilize glass electrodes, thin-film transistor (TFT)-based pH sensors offer distinct advantages, including enhanced response speed and additional circuit functions. In this study, we developed a pH sensor that incorporates biocompatible parylene-C as both the substrate and sensing layer, thereby enhancing flexibility, transparency, and biological compatibility. We conducted tests to measure the voltage-current characteristics of the pH solutions and assessed their performance in terms of drift and hysteresis. Using InGaZnO (IGZO) as the channel material, our pH sensor demonstrated an average sensitivity of approximately 82 mV/pH, albeit with certain drift limitations. The initial pH measurements exhibited good reversibility over time. IGZO- and parylene-C-based TFT pH sensors are well suited for various applications, including wearable health monitoring, owing to their flexibility and biocompatibility.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.45-50
• /
• 2023

Microfluidic preconcentration technologies, which collect or extract low-abundance analytes in a specific location, have been spotlighted in various applications such as medical and bio-engineering. Here, we conducted extensive studies on the variables to be considered when concentrating target samples based on electrophoresis in an electromembrane system utilizing an ion exchange membrane. Using negatively charged Alexa Fluor 488 and positively charged Rhodamine 6G as fluorescent dyes, we examined the effects of flow velocity of the main channel, channel electrolyte concentration, and applied voltage on sample preconcentration. As a result, it was found that the preconcentration of the target sample occurs much better when the flow velocity is slow and the concentration of the main channel containing the sample is high, given that the channel concentration ratio (main and buffer) is constant. In addition, based on the experimental data acquired in this study, the electrophoretic mobility values of Alexa Fluor 488 and Rhodamine 6G were experimentally calculated and compared.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
• /
• v.9 no.2
• /
• pp.132-136
• /
• 2004

The LAL (Limulus amebocyte lysate) test for the detection and quantification of endotoxin is based on the gelation reaction between endotoxin and LAL from a blood extract of Limulus polyphemus. The test is labor intensive, requiring dedicated personnel, a relatively long reaction time (approximately 1 h), relatively large volumes of samples and reagents and the detection of the end-point is rather subjective. To solve these problems, a miniaturized LOC (lab-on-a-chip) prototype, 62mm (L) ${\times}$ 18 mm (W), was fabricated using PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) bonded to glass. Using this prototype, in which 2mm (W) ${\times}$ 44.3mm (L) ${\times}$ 100 $\mu\textrm{m}$ (D) microfluidic channel was constructed, turbidometric and chromogenic assay detection methods were compared, and the chromogenic method was found the most suitable for a small volume assay. In this assay, the kinetic-point method was more accurate than the end-point method. The PDMS chip thickness was found to be minimized to around 2 mm to allow sufficient light transmittance, which necessitated the use of a glass slide bonding for chip rigidity. Due to this miniaturization, the test time was reduced from 1 h to less than 10 min, and the sample volume could be reduced from 100 to ca. 4.4 ${\mu}$L. In summation, this study suggested that the LOC using the LAL test principle could be an alternative as a semi-automated and reliable method for the detection of endotoxin.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
• /
• v.29 no.4
• /
• pp.55-61
• /
• 2022

There is a major interest in diagnostic technology for multiple cancers worldwide. In order to reduce the difficulty of cancer diagnosis, a liquid biopsy technology based on a microfluidic device using trace amounts of biofluids such as blood is being studied. And optical biosensing, which measures the concentration of analytes through fluorescence imaging using biofluids, requires various strategies to improve sensitivity, and specialists and equipment are needed to carry out these strategies. This leads to an increase in diagnostic and production costs, and it is necessary to develop a technology to solve this problem. In this paper, we design and propose a fluorescent multi-cancer diagnostic sensing platform structure that implements passive self-separation technology and molecular recognition activation functions by fluid mixing, only with the geometry and microfluidic phenomena of microchannels based on self-driven flow by capillary force. In order to check the parameters affecting the performance of the plasma separation part of the designed sensor, the hydrodynamic diameter of the channel and the viscosity of the fluid were set as variables to confirm the formation of plasma separation flow through simulation. And finally, we propose an optimal sensor platform structure.

• KIEE International Transactions on Electrophysics and Applications
• /
• v.4C no.4
• /
• pp.142-144
• /
• 2004

To use Poly-dimethylsiloxane (PDMS) for the electrokinetic flow channel, the PDMS surface must be modified to be hydrophilic. With $O_2$ plasma treatment, it is difficult to maintain hydrophilicity for more than one day. In this paper, we present the chemical modification of the PDMS surface using 2-Hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) to prolong hydrophilicity lifetime. The oxide radicals generated temporarily on the PDMS surface by $O_2$ plasma are grafted with HEMA. Once the PDMS samples have been grafted, they demonstrate improved hydrophilicity retainment and electroosmotic flow characteristics compared to the untreated PDMS and the oxidized PDMS following the $O_2$ plasma process. This phenomenon was verified by the contact angles, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra and electro osmotic flow rates observed for more than 300 hours.

• Proceedings of the KSME Conference
• /
• 2007.05b
• /
• pp.2791-2796
• /
• 2007

In their long journey through the cardiovascular circuit, erythrocytes are coerced to shape transform and assume different shapes on account of varying flow conditions in different blood vessels. The present work was aimed to visualize these erythrocyte shape transformations by an invitro microcirculatory model, and assess multi-shape erythrocyte deformability. The model uses an in-house fabricated, inexpensive disposable micro flow channel to mimic certain invivo conditions and a fast frame video microscopic system for imaging the shape changes in erythrocytes. Results show the multi-shape transformation of erythrocyte christened as discoidal shape, the asymmetrically deformed 'hat' and 'bullet-like' shapes, and the axially deformed 'slipper' and 'spindle-like' shapes. Specific erythrocyte showed the shape transition and transformation while passing through the observed window. The obtained erythrocyte shapes very analyzed for deformability index using image processing techniques that varied significantly (p <0.001) for different shapes as compared with the resting shape.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
• /
• 2011.07a
• /
• pp.1686-1687
• /
• 2011

A microfabricated chip with in-channel electrochemical cell using interdigitated gold electrode was fabricated for sensitive electrochemical analysis. The gold electrodes were fabricated on glass wafer using thermal evaporator and were covered using PDMS mold containing microchannel for analyte and electrolyte. The active area of each electrode was $250\;{\mu}m{\times}200\;{\mu}m$ with a gap of 200 ${\mu}m$ between the electrodes. Microelectrodes results in maximum amplification of signal, since the signal enhancement effect due to cycling of the reduced and oxidized species strongly depends on the inter electrode distance. Analytes such as methylene blue and guanosine were characterized using the fabricated electrodes and their electrochemical characteristics were compared with conventional bulk electrodes. The device so developed shall find use as disposable electrochemical cell for rapid and sensitive analysis of electroactive species.