Micromixer apparatus and method therefor

• US 20060219307A1
• Filed: 03/31/2005
• Published: 10/05/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: National Taiwan University (Government of The Republic of China)
• Original Assignee: National Taiwan University (Government of The Republic of China)
• Inventors: Hsu, Ming-Chang, Fedorchenko, Alexander I., Lee, Chih-Kung, Wang, Yi-Hua, Lee, Chun-Hsien, Wang, An-Bang, Travnicek, Zdenek
• Application Number:
  US11/095,075
• Publication Number:
  US 20060219307A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 137/824
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 25/23 Mixing by intersecting jets
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 31/65 the materials to be mixed being directly submitted to a pulsating movement, e.g. by means of an oscillating piston or air column
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 31/651 Mixing by successively aspirating a part of the mixture in a conduit, e.g. a piston, and reinjecting it through the same conduit into the receptacle
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 33/30 Micromixers
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 33/3012 Interdigital streams, e.g. lamellae
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 33/3022 the components being formed by independent droplets which are alternated, the mixing of the components being achieved by diffusion between droplets
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/2174 Co-lineal, oppositely-directed power inputs [e.g., impact modulator]

Abstract

A micromixer used for microfluidic system is provided. The micromixer incorporates a pairs of reciprocating pumps and a pairs of fluidic element for mixing at least two fluids. With such a microfluid mixer, the at least two fluids are mixed when the reciprocating pumps are in their forward strokes by means of the impingement of two pulsation flows. The two fluids are also mixed when the reciprocating pumps are in their backward strokes by means of the generation of the vortexes, and the two fluids are also mixed by means of mass diffusion via a purposeful like-lamella-structure.

Claims

1. A mixing apparatus, comprising:

a first and a second fluidic elements;

a first and a second micropumps, respectively configured at each of the input of said first and second fluidic elements; and

a chamber configured between said first and second fluidic elements,

wherein said mixing apparatus outputs a first and a second jets respectively from said first and second fluidic elements into said chamber by means of reciprocations of said first and second micropumps, so that said first and second jets collide with each other and then are mixed during forward strokes of said first and second micropumps, and parts of said mixed jets are respectively pulled back from said chamber to cause flow separation and recirculation in said first and second fluidic elements during reverse strokes of said first and second micropumps.

2. The mixing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first and second micropumps are reciprocating pumps.

3. The mixing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said reciprocating pumps are piezoelectric diaphragm pumps.

4. The mixing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein each of said reciprocating pumps further comprises an inlet, a cavity and an actuator.

5. The mixing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said inlet further comprises a fluid diode.

6. The mixing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first and second fluidic elements are nozzle-diffusers.

7. The mixing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein each of said nozzle-diffusers is composed of a convergent flow channel and a divergent flow channel.

8. The mixing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a convergent angle of said convergent flow channel is ranged from 60 to 120 degree.

9. The mixing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a divergent angle of said divergent flow channel is ranged from 5 to 12 degree.

10. The mixing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of said first and second fluidic elements further comprises a fluid diode.

11. A method for mixing fluids, comprising steps of:

providing a fluidic system comprising at least a reciprocating pump, at least a fluidic element and a chamber;

supplying a first fluid in said chamber; and

transporting a second fluid through said fluidic element into said chamber via said reciprocating pump to form a pulsation jet entering said chamber,

wherein parts of said pulsation jet and said first fluid are pulled back from said chamber to cause flow separation and recirculation in said fluidic element during the reverse stroke of said reciprocating pump.

12. A method for mixing at least two fluids in a mixing apparatus having a pair of reciprocating pumps, a pair of fluidic elements and a chamber, comprising steps of:

supplying a first and a second fluids into said pair of reciprocating pumps, respectively; and

transporting said first and second fluids into said chamber via said pair of reciprocating pumps to form a first and a second jets entering said chamber and then colliding with each other, so as to form a collision jet in said chamber.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein said first and second jets are in-phase jets, so that said first and second jets are mixed by means of a formation of said collision jet in said chamber.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein the frequencies and amplitudes of said first and second jets are controlled by said pair of reciprocating pumps.

15. The method according to claim 12, wherein the mixing efficiency of said collision jet is enhanced by coordinating the frequencies of said first and second fluids with nature frequency of said collision jet.

16. The method according to claim 12, further comprising a step of forming flow separation and recirculation in said pair of fluidic elements during the reverse strokes of said pair of reciprocating pumps.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein said first and second jets are anti-phase jets to enhance the mixing efficiency of said first and second fluids.

18. The method according to claim 12, further comprising a fine mixing step by means of mass diffusion.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the frequencies and amplitudes of said first and second jets are regulated to form a lamella-like structure of said first and second jets, so as to enhance the mixing efficiency of said first and second fluids.