Flow Regulation Performance Analysis of Microfluidic Passive Valve for High Throughput Liquid Delivery

Abstract

A microfluidic passive valve (MPV) is important for precise flow control, and it determines the reliability of the microfluidic system. In this paper, a novel MPV capable of delivering a constant flow rate independently of inlet pressure changes is proposed. The flow rate of the MPV is adjusted by the difference between the fluid force on the upper surface of the valve core and the spring force. The constant flow rate of the MPV is maintained by automatically changing the size of the gap channel formed by the groove on the valve core and the baffle on the valve body. The nearly constant flow rate of the MPV is 6.26 mL/min, with a variation of 6.5% under the inlet pressure varied from 1.25 kPa to 3.5 kPa. In addition, the flow characteristics of the MPV are analyzed by numerical simulation. With the increase in the inlet pressure, the maximum velocity gradually increases, while the increment of the maximum velocity decreases. In the movement process of the valve core, the region of pressure drop becomes larger. This work has a certain reference value for the design and research of the MPVs with high throughput liquid delivery.

Design and Characterization of an Adjustable Passive Flow Regulator and Application to External CSF Drainage

“…A variation of pressure moves a flexible element of the device to induce a change in the fluidic path cross-section or length. The flexible element can be a silicon membrane [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ], an elastomeric membrane [ 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 ], a silicone tube [ 24 ], a thin flap [ 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ], or a moving piston [ 29 , 30 ].…”