Laminated microfluidic structures and method for making
First Claim
1. A method for laminating at least two polymeric components to form a laminated, polymeric microfluidic structure, comprising:
- applying a weak solvent to a surface of one of the at least two components,wherein the weak solvent has a chemical formula of;
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Abstract
A method for making a polymeric microfluidic structure in which two or more components (layers) of the microfluidic structure are fixedly bonded or laminated with a weak solvent bonding agent, particularly acetonitrile or a mixture of acetonitrile and alcohol. In an aspect, acetonitrile can be used as a weak solvent bonding agent to enclose a microstructure fabricated in or on a non-elastomeric polymer such as polystyrene, polycarbonate, acrylic or other linear polymer to form a three-dimensional microfluidic network. The method involves the steps of wetting at least one of the opposing surfaces of the polymeric substrate components with the weak solvent bonding agent in a given, lower temperature range, adjacently contacting the opposing surfaces, and thermally activating the bonding agent at a higher temperature than the lower temperature range for a given period of time with RF or ultrasonic energy. The contacted polymeric substrates may also be aligned prior to thermal activation and compressed during thermal activation. A laminated, polymeric microfluidic structure is also disclosed.
24 Citations
24 Claims
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1. A method for laminating at least two polymeric components to form a laminated, polymeric microfluidic structure, comprising:
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applying a weak solvent to a surface of one of the at least two components, wherein the weak solvent has a chemical formula of; - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method for laminating at least two polymeric components to form a laminated, polymeric microfluidic structure, comprising:
applying a weak solvent to a surface of one of the at least two components, wherein the weak solvent has a chemical formula of; - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method for laminating at least two polymeric components to form a laminated, polymeric microfluidic structure, comprising:
applying a weak solvent to a surface of one of the at least two components, wherein the weak solvent has a chemical formula of; - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method for laminating at least two polymeric components to form a laminated, polymeric microfluidic structure, comprising:
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applying a weak solvent to a surface of one of the at least two components, wherein the weak solvent is acetonitrile; adjacently contacting opposing surfaces, including the surface having the applied weak solvent, of the at least two components; and creating a thermal activation condition for thermally activating the weak solvent, wherein the thermal activation condition includes at least one of applying radio frequency energy and ultrasonic energy. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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Specification