Inertial microfluidics: current status, challenges, and future opportunities

Abstract

Inertial microfluidics uses the hydrodynamic effects induced at finite Reynolds numbers to achieve the passive manipulation of particles, cells, or fluids, and offers the advantages of high-throughput processing, simple channel...

Hydraulic–electric analogy for design and operation of microfluidic systems

“…Opportunities for future developments of microfluidic circuits include the use of cost-effective 3D printing to fabricate microfluidic components, integration of a small power source to improve the portability, and on-chip storage of reagents for non-experts with minimal operations. 1,[119][120][121][122][123][124][125] 3D printing is a versatile and accessible way to fabricate complex microstructures of high precision without the need for cleanroom facilities, enabling rapid prototyping and optimization of microfluidic circuits. A portable pressure or flow source, such as a miniaturized pressure regulator or a pneumatic micro-pump, can be used to power the microfluidic circuits to minimize the external control systems.…”

Continuous CTC separation through a DEP‐based contraction–expansion inertial microfluidic channel

“…47 CE channel can separate both larger and smaller cells efficiently due to the microvortices which are formed inside the channel. 48,49 Moreover, high-throughput, increased separation distance, enrichment of cells and enhanced performance make the CE channels as an excellent choice for cell separation. [50][51][52] Lee et al 53 reported a straight symmetric CE channel for the separation of breast cancer cells from WBCs with a recovery rate > 99% and a 97.4% blood cell rejection ratio.…”

“…Due to the efficient particle focusing, separation, and mixing capability, the contraction–expansion (CE) channel has attracted the focus of researchers in the recent past as it allows inertial size separation by a force balance between the inertial lift and Dean drag forces in fluid regimes 47 . CE channel can separate both larger and smaller cells efficiently due to the microvortices which are formed inside the channel 48,49 . Moreover, high‐throughput, increased separation distance, enrichment of cells and enhanced performance make the CE channels as an excellent choice for cell separation 50–52 .…”

Recent advances in multimode microfluidic separation of particles and cells

“…In contrast, the passive methods for particle and cell separation exploit the flow-induced lift and/or drag forces to direct particles/cells toward differential equilibrium positions [22,23]. This type of separation covers inertial [24][25][26]/viscoelastic [27][28][29] microfluidics, deterministic lateral displacement (DLD) [30], pinched flow fractionation (PFF) [31], hydrophoresis [32], and hydrodynamic filtration [33]. These methods are simple to use and capable of offering (relatively) high throughput but usually suffer from the drawback of limited resolution and specificity [34].…”