Motion of a sphere parallel to plane walls in a Poiseuille flow. Application to field-flow fractionation and hydrodynamic chromatography

Continuous Focusing of Particles by AC-Electroosmosis and Induced Dipole Interactions

Continuous particle focusing by using microfluidics is an effective method for separating particles, cells, or droplets for analytical purposes. Previously, it was shown that an alternating current across rectangular microchannels with slightly deformed side walls results in vortex flow patterns caused by alternating current electroosmosis (AC-EOF) and could lead to particle focusing. In this work, we explore this mechanism by experimentally studying the particle focusing behavior for various fluid flow velocities through a microchannel. Since it is unlikely that the particles are kept in their focused position solely by convection, a theoretical force balance between the hydrodynamic and the induced dipole force was determined. In our experiments, it was found that there is no substantial effect of the pressure-driven fluid velocity on the particle focusing velocity within the studied range. From the theoretical force balance calculations, it was determined that while the addition of the induced dipole force can still not completely describe the experimentally observed particle focusing, the induced dipole can be strong enough to overcome the hydrodynamic force. Finally, it is hypothesized that under specific circumstances, including a repulsive electrostatic force between a particle and electrode wall can complete the theoretical particle focusing force balance. Alternative phenomena that could also play a role in particle focusing are proposed.

Migration velocity of red blood cells in microchannels

The lateral migration of red blood cells (RBCs) in confined channel flows is an important ingredient of microcirculatory hydrodynamics and is involved in the development of a cell free layer near vessel walls and influences the distribution of RBCs in networks. It is also relevant to a number of lab-on-chip applications. This migration is a consequence of their deformability and is due to the combined effects of hydrodynamic wall repulsion and the curvature of the fluid velocity profile. We performed microfluidic experiments with dilute suspensions of RBCs in which the trajectories and migration away from the channel wall are analyzed to extract the mean behavior, from which we propose a generic scaling law for the transverse migration velocity valid in a whole range of parameters relevant to microcirculatory and practical situations. Experiments with RBCs of different mechanical properties (separated by density gradient sedimentation or fixed with glutaraldehyde) show the influence of this parameter which can induce significant dispersion of the trajectories.

Transport of nano-objects in narrow channels: influence of Brownian diffusion, confinement and particle nature

This paper presents experimental results about transport of dilute suspensions of nano-objects in silicon-glass micrometric and sub-micrometric channels. Two kinds of objects are used: solid, rigid latex beads and spherical capsule-shaped, soft polymersomes. They are tracked using fluorescence microscopy. Three aspects are studied: confinement (ratio between particle diameter and channel depth), Brownian diffusion and particle nature. The aim of this work is to understand how these different aspects affect the transport of suspensions in narrow channels and to understand the different mechanisms at play. Concerning the solid beads we observe the appearance of two regimes, one where the experimental mean velocity is close to the expected one and another where this velocity is lower. This is directly related to a competition between confinement, Brownian diffusion and advection. These two regimes are shown to be linked to the inhomogeneity of particles distribution in the channel depth, which we experimentally deduce from velocity distributions. This inhomogeneity appears during the entrance process into the sub-micrometric channels, as for hydrodynamic separation or deterministic lateral displacement. Concerning the nature of the particles we observed a shift of transition towards the second regime likely due to the relationships between shear stress and polymersomes mechanical properties which could reduce the inhomogeneity imposed by the geometry of our device.

Spatially dependent diffusion coefficient as a model for pH sensitive microgel particles in microchannels

Solute transport and intermixing in microfluidic devices is strongly dependent on diffusional processes. Brownian Dynamics simulations of pressure-driven flow of model microgel particles in microchannels have been carried out to explore these processes and the factors that influence them. The effects of a pH-field that induces a spatial dependence of particle size and consequently the self-diffusion coefficient and system thermodynamic state were focused on. Simulations were carried out in 1D to represent some of the cross flow dependencies, and in 2D and 3D to include the effects of flow and particle concentration, with typical stripe-like diffusion coefficient spatial variations. In 1D, the mean square displacement and particle displacement probability distribution function agreed well with an analytically solvable model consisting of infinitely repulsive walls and a discontinuous pH-profile in the middle of the channel. Skew category Brownian motion and non-Gaussian dynamics were observed, which follows from correlations of step lengths in the system, and can be considered to be an example of so-called "diffusing diffusivity." In Poiseuille flow simulations, the particles accumulated in regions of larger diffusivity and the largest particle concentration throughput was found when this region was in the middle of the channel. The trends in the calculated cross-channel diffusional behavior were found to be very similar in 2D and 3D.

The Raspberry model for hydrodynamic interactions revisited. II. The effect of confinement

The so-called "raspberry" model refers to the hybrid lattice-Boltzmann (LB) and Langevin molecular dynamics schemes for simulating the dynamics of suspensions of colloidal particles, originally developed by Lobaskin and Dünweg [New J. Phys. 6, 54 (2004)], wherein discrete surface points are used to achieve fluid-particle coupling. In this paper, we present a follow up to our study of the effectiveness of the raspberry model in reproducing hydrodynamic interactions in the Stokes regime for spheres arranged in a simple-cubic crystal [Fischer et al., J. Chem. Phys. 143, 084107 (2015)]. Here, we consider the accuracy with which the raspberry model is able to reproduce such interactions for particles confined between two parallel plates. To this end, we compare our LB simulation results to established theoretical expressions and finite-element calculations. We show that there is a discrepancy between the translational and rotational mobilities when only surface coupling points are used, as also found in Part I of our joint publication. We demonstrate that adding internal coupling points to the raspberry can be used to correct said discrepancy in confining geometries as well. Finally, we show that the raspberry model accurately reproduces hydrodynamic interactions between a spherical colloid and planar walls up to roughly one LB lattice spacing.

Metrology of confined flows using wide field nanoparticle velocimetry

The manipulation of fluids in micro/nanofabricated systems opens new avenues to engineer the transport of matter at the molecular level. Yet the number of methods for the in situ characterization of fluid flows in shallow channels is limited. Here we establish a simple method called nanoparticle velocimetry distribution analysis (NVDA) that relies on wide field microscopy to measure the flow rate and channel height based on the fitting of particle velocity distributions along and across the flow direction. NVDA is validated by simulations, showing errors in velocity and height determination of less than 1% and 8% respectively, as well as with experiments, in which we monitor the behavior of 200 nm nanoparticles conveyed in channels of ~1.8 μm in height. We then show the relevance of this assay for the characterization of flows in bulging channels, and prove its suitability to characterize the concentration of particles across the channel height in the context of visco-elastic focusing. Our method for rapid and quantitative flow characterization has therefore a broad spectrum of applications in micro/nanofluidics, and a strong potential for the optimization of Lab-on-Chips modules in which engineering of confined transport is necessary.

Field-flow fractionation and hydrodynamic chromatography on a microfluidic chip

We present gravitational field-flow fractionation and hydrodynamic chromatography of colloids eluting through 18 μm microchannels. Using video microscopy and mesoscopic simulations, we investigate the average retention ratio of colloids with both a large specific weight and neutral buoyancy. We consider the entire range of colloid sizes, including particles that barely fit in the microchannel and nanoscopic particles. Ideal theory predicts four operational modes, from hydrodynamic chromatography to Faxén-mode field-flow fractionation. We experimentally demonstrate, for the first time, the existence of the Faxén-mode field-flow fractionation and the transition from hydrodynamic chromatography to normal-mode field-flow fractionation. Furthermore, video microscopy and simulations show that the retention ratios are largely reduced above the steric-inversion point, causing the variation of the retention ratio in the steric- and Faxén-mode regimes to be suppressed due to increased drag. We demonstrate that theory can accurately predict retention ratios if hydrodynamic interactions with the microchannel walls (wall drag) are added to the ideal theory. Rather than limiting the applicability, these effects allow the microfluidic channel size to be tuned to ensure high selectivity. Our findings indicate that particle velocimetry methods must account for the wall-induced lag when determining flow rates in highly confining systems.

Impact of carrier fluid composition on recovery of nanoparticles and proteins in flow field flow fractionation

Flow field flow fractionation (F4) is an invaluable separation tool for large analytes, including nanoparticles and biomolecule complexes. However, sample loss due to analyte-channel membrane interaction limits extensive usage of F4 at present, which could be strongly affected by the carrier fluid composition. This work studied the impacts of carrier fluid (CF) composition on nanoparticle (NP) recovery in F4, with focus on high ionic strength conditions. Successful analysis of NPs in a biomolecules-friendly environment could expand the applicability of F4 to the developing field of nanobiotechnology. Recovery of the unfunctionalized polystyrene NPs of 199, 102, and 45 nm in CFs with various pH (6.2, 7.4 and 8.2), increasing ionic strength (0-0.1M), and different types of co- and counter-ions, were investigated. Additionally, elution of the 85 nm carboxylate NPs and two proteins, human serum albumin (HSA) and immunoglobulin (IgG), at high ionic strengths (0-0.15M) was investigated. Our results suggested that (1) electrostatic repulsion between the negatively charged NPs and the regenerated cellulose membrane was the main force to avoid particle adsorption on the membrane; (2) larger particles experienced higher attractive force and thus were influenced more by variation in CF composition; and (3) buffers containing weak anions or NPs with weak anion as the surface functional groups provided higher tolerance to the increase in ionic strength, owing to more anions being trapped inside the NP porous structure. Protein adsorption onto the membrane was also briefly investigated in salted CFs, using HSA and IgG. We believe our findings could help to identify the basic carrier fluid composition for higher sample recovery in F4 analysis of nanoparticles in a protein-friendly environment, which will be useful for applying F4 in bioassays and in nanotoxicology studies.