Systems and methods of forming particles
First Claim
1. A collection of articles comprising a plurality of particles, at least some of which are non-spherical;
- and/or comprise a metal and/or a magnetizable material and/or a nylon and/or a ferrofluid; and
/or at least some of which particles have a ratio of a largest dimension to a smallest dimension that is less than about 5; and
/or at least some of which particles have a porosity of at least about 0.1; and
/or at least some of which particles are microparticles having a core and a shell, the shell comprising a semi-permeable portion and/or a polymer made by a process comprising urging a fluid comprising a polymer precursor into a microfluidic channel, and hardening the polymer precursor in the channel to form the polymer;
wherein the particles have an average dimension of less than about 500 micrometers and a distribution of dimensions such that no more than about 5% of the particles have a dimension greater than about 10% of the average dimension.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention generally relates to systems and methods of forming particles and, in certain aspects, to systems and methods of forming particles that are substantially monodisperse. Microfluidic systems and techniques for forming such particles are provided, for instance, particles may be formed using gellation, solidification, and/or chemical reactions such as cross-linking, polymerization, and/or interfacial polymerization reactions. In one aspect, the present invention is directed to a plurality of particles having an average dimension of less than about 500 micrometers and a distribution of dimensions such that no more than about 5% of the particles have a dimension greater than about 10% of the average dimension, which can be made via microfluidic systems. In one set of embodiments, at least some of the particles may comprise a metal, and in certain embodiments, at least some of the particles may comprise a magnetizable material. In another set of embodiments, at least some of the particles may be porous. In some embodiments, the invention includes non-spherical particles. Non-spherical particles may be formed, for example, by urging a fluidic droplet into a channel having a smallest dimension that is smaller than the diameter of a perfect mathematical sphere having a volume of the droplet, and solidifying the droplet, and/or by exposing at least a portion of a plurality of particles to an agent able to remove at least a portion of the particles.
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Citations
42 Claims
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1. A collection of articles comprising a plurality of particles, at least some of which are non-spherical;
- and/or comprise a metal and/or a magnetizable material and/or a nylon and/or a ferrofluid; and
/or at least some of which particles have a ratio of a largest dimension to a smallest dimension that is less than about 5; and
/or at least some of which particles have a porosity of at least about 0.1; and
/or at least some of which particles are microparticles having a core and a shell, the shell comprising a semi-permeable portion and/or a polymer made by a process comprising urging a fluid comprising a polymer precursor into a microfluidic channel, and hardening the polymer precursor in the channel to form the polymer;
wherein the particles have an average dimension of less than about 500 micrometers and a distribution of dimensions such that no more than about 5% of the particles have a dimension greater than about 10% of the average dimension. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12)
- and/or comprise a metal and/or a magnetizable material and/or a nylon and/or a ferrofluid; and
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9. A method, comprising an act of:
solidifying at least a portion of a plurality of fluidic droplets, at least some of which comprise a metal and/or a magnetizable material and/or a nylon and/or a ferrofluid, wherein the fluidic droplets have an average dimension of less than about 500 micrometers and a distribution of dimensions such that no more than about 5% of the droplets have a dimension greater than about 10% of the average dimension. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method, comprising acts of:
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urging a fluidic droplet into a microfluidic channel having a smallest cross-section dimension that is smaller than the diameter of a perfect mathematical sphere having a volume of the droplet; and
solidifying the fluidic droplet within the channel to form a non-spherical particle. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A method, comprising an act of:
exposing at least a portion of a plurality of particles to an agent able to remove at least a portion of the particles, wherein the particles have an average dimension of less than about 500 micrometers, about 100 micrometers, about 50 micrometers, about 40 micrometers, about 25 micrometers, about 10 micrometers, about 5 micrometers, about 1 micrometer, about 0.3 micrometers, about 0.1 micrometers, or about 0.01 micrometers and a distribution of dimensions such that no more than about 5%, about 3%, about 1%, about 0.1%, or about 0.1% of the particles have a dimension greater than about 10%, about 3%, about 1%, about 0.1%, or about 0.01% of the average dimension. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
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35. A method, comprising an act of:
hardening a polymeric material around a sectioned optical fiber. - View Dependent Claims (36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
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42. A collection of articles comprising a plurality of particles, at least some of which are microparticles having a core and a shell, the shell comprising a nylon.
Specification