Development of a microfluidic unit for sequencing fluid samples for composition analysis

A microfluidic sample-sequencing unit was developed as a part of a high-throughput catalyst screening facility. It may find applications wherever a fluid is to be selected for analysis from any one of several sources, such as microreactors operating in parallel. The novel feature is that the key components are fluidic valves having no moving parts and operating at very low sample flow Reynolds numbers, typically below 100. The inertial effects utilized in conventional no-moving-part fluidics are nearly absent; instead, the flows are pressure-driven. Switching between input channels is by high-Reynolds-number control flows, the jet pumping effect of which simultaneously cleans the downstream cavities to prevent crosscontamination between the samples. In the configuration discussed here, the integrated circuit containing an array of 16 valves is etched into an 84mm diameter stainless steel foil. This is clamped into a massive assembly containing 16 mini-reactors operated at up to 400C and 4 MPa. This paper describes the design basis and experience with prototypes. Results of CFD analysis, with scrutiny of some discrepancies when compared with flow visualization, is included.