An open source toolkit for 3D printed fluidics

Abstract

As 3D printing technologies become more accessible, chemists are beginning to design and develop their own bespoke printable devices particularly applied to the field of flow chemistry. Designing functional flow components can often be a lengthy and laborious process requiring complex 3D modelling and multiple design iterations. In this work, we present an easy to follow design workflow for minimising the complexity of this design optimization process. The workflow follows the development of a 3D printable ‘toolkit’ of common fittings and connectors required for constructing basic flow chemistry configurations. The toolkit components consist of male threaded nuts, junction connectors and a Luer adapter. The files have themselves been made freely available and open source. The low cost associated with the toolkit may encourage educators to incorporate flow chemistry practical work into their syllabus such that students may be introduced to the principles of flow chemistry earlier on in their education and furthermore, may develop an early appreciation of the benefits of 3D printing in scientific research. In addition to the printable toolkit, the use of the 3D modelling platform – Rhino3D has been demonstrated for its application in fluidic reactor chip design modification. The simple user interface of the programme reduces the complexity and workload involved in printable fluidic reactor design.

A 3D Printer in the lab: not only a toy

“…[33] There is also an opensource repository of 3D models for microfluidics, not only devices themselves but also for all connections and adaptors (Figure 3a). [34] Another option for using a 3D printer to fabricate microfluidic devices is to use the solubility of some 3D printing plastics to our advantage. In 2015, our group printed ABS and embedded it into PDMS.…”

A 3D Printer in the lab: not only a toy

“…[26] There is also an open-source repository of 3D printing models for microfluidics, not only devices themselves but also all connections and Luer adaptors (Figure 3a). [27] Another option for using a 3D printer to fabricate microfluidic devices is to use the solubility of some 3D printing plastics to our advantage. In 2015, our group printed ABS and embedded it into PDMS.…”

Use of open-source software platform to develop dashboards for control and automation of flow chemistry equipment

“…Examples of this can be found in the development of photometers, 22 autosamplers, 23 fluidic valves 24 and 3D printed components. 25,26 This manuscript aims to add to this by reporting on the development of a control dashboard using open-source software, with the goal of encouraging others to do so as well, using the framework provided. The utility of the opensource dashboard is demonstrated through a semi-autonomous closed-loop optimisation of a standard organic reaction.…”