1. Field
The present disclosure relates to microfluidic devices, such as valves. In particular, it relates to methods and devices for replication of three-dimensional valves from printed wax molds or other types of rapid prototyping technologies, such as UV light curable polymers like PFPE.
2. Related Art
Recently, lithographic techniques have been successfully applied towards the miniaturization of fluidic elements, such as valves, pumps and limited three dimensional structures (see references 1-10). The integration of many devices on a single fluidic chip has enabled the development of powerful and flexible analysis systems with applications ranging from cell sorting to protein synthesis. Through replication molding and embossing from photolithographically patterned dies, inexpensive fluidic systems with pneumatic actuation have been developed, by several groups (see references 11-19). Hermetically sealed valves, pumps and flow channels can be formed in polydimethylsilicone (PDMS) and related compounds (RTV, etc.), and in multilayer soft lithography, two or more replication molded layers are aligned and subsequently bonded to create systems of pneumatic actuation channels controlling flow within a layer of flow channels.
For example, two-dimensional valves are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,929,030 to Unger et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The valves disclosed in Unger are called two-dimensional because they are an extrusion of a two-dimensional drawing. In particular, in Unger, a structure is obtained where a first two-dimensional layer is put on top of a second two-dimensional layer. The two layers are then bonded together. After that, one of the two layers is pressurized to push on the other. No fluid flows between these two layers.
As the geometry of the pneumatic valve determines the actuation pressure, it is possible to define pneumatic multiplexing geometries that permit the control of many valves on a microfluidic chip by a much smaller number of control valves off-chip (see reference 20). Unfortunately, the two-dimensional nature of the flow channel arrangement limits the interconnection of this kind of two-dimensional fluidic system. Moreover, multi-layer soft lithography requires the use of elastomeric materials that can bond well to each other to avoid delamination of the pneumatic film layer from the fluid flow layer.
According to a first aspect, a printing method to fabricate a three-dimensional microfluidic component is provided, comprising: forming a three-dimensional mold of the three-dimensional microfluidic component, the mold made of a first wax; providing a sacrificial material acting as a temporary support, the sacrificial material made of a second wax; dissolving the second wax; pouring a component material onto the mold; curing the poured component material; and melting away the first wax.
According to a second aspect, a printing method to fabricate a three-dimensional microfluidic structure is provided, comprising: printing a three-dimensional microfluidic structure made of light curable plastic; curing the light curable plastic; and removing uncured plastic.
According to a third aspect, a three-dimensional microfluidic valve network is provided, comprising: microfluidic flow tubes; pressure chambers surrounding the microfluidic flow tubes; and vias connecting the microfluidic flow tubes.
The structures disclosed in accordance with the present disclosure are truly three-dimensional, in the sense that both the control and fluid lines can be built in the same fabrication step, without need to bond them together. In a structure like the one shown in the present disclosure, separate control and fluid lines having different geometries can be built, together with vias or chambers encircling a channel.
Three-dimensional connections between fluidic layers offer more flexible design opportunities that are inaccessible with planar techniques.
The methods in accordance with the present disclosure allow to construct fluidic conduits that require structural supports only every few centimeters, as well as robust, tunable, three-dimensional valves which can control flow pressures of over 220 kiloPascals (33 psi).
The three-dimensional replication-molded microfluidic design is also insensitive to swelling caused by aggressive solvents.
Three-dimensional soft lithography offers many advantages over the more conventional multi-layer soft lithography, which is based on two-dimensional valve and pump definition. One key advantage of developing devices from three-dimensional replication molding is that it enables the use of a wide variety of elastomers and plastics that are more resistant to strong acids, bases and organic solvents. Moreover, the pressure in the flow channels can be increased and the actuation pressure of the pneumatic lines can be decreased by implementing designs that do not involve layers that may delaminate and can close the valve by applying pneumatic pressure from all sides.
An opportunity obtained from three-dimensional definition is the increase in inter-connectivity of the fluidic components and improvement in the flow channel integration in all three dimensions through the use of via holes that can jump over a fluidic layer or control layer with a commercially available wax molding system. A further opportunity is the ability to use fluorinated compounds. The first results obtained by applicants on this new kind of microfluidics indicate that denser integration with larger numbers of components and more complex fluidic multiplexing systems can be implemented through 3-D replication molding. Furthermore, the additional dimension allows the formation of larger diameter fluidic channels and enables fast flow and higher volume fluidic handling.
To solve the limitations of two-dimensional layered systems and to enable more flexible microfluidic plumbing topologies, the present application discloses a three-dimensional replication molding method that permits the construction of valves and pumps that are interconnected in all dimensions. To create three-dimensional replication dies, a commercial wax printing system can be used (e.g., Solidscape T66). The Solidscape T66 is a rapid protype machine (RPM) which can define features as small as 12.5 microns high by 115 microns wide. The person skilled in the art will understand that wax printing systems different from the Solidscape T66 machine or other rapid prototyping technologies (such as those producing a positive directly from light curable polymers like PFPE) can be used, so long as they allow microscale features to be obtained. Microfluidic components usually have a radius in the 10-500 microns range, preferably a 10-115 microns range, and most preferably a 10-100 microns range. The person skilled in the art will be able to select the adequate dimensions in order to allow the components to be integrated on a chip.
The combination of printed wax droplets with precise milling heads and stage positioning enables wax molds to be constructed with feature sizes comparable to those made by photolithography. The wax mold can be computer designed and printed directly onto a flat substrate without the need for any photolithography masks. The designer can fabricate three-dimensional microfluidic components interconnected with great flexibility.
According to a first embodiment, also shown in
According to a second embodiment, also shown in
During the printing process, also a sacrificial or support wax is provided, (S10) to temporarily support the desired, suspended structure during fabrication. The sacrificial or support wax is dissolved (S11) at the end of the fabrication process. If necessary, the fabricated build wax mold can be cured or dried (S12) by using, for example, air or an oven.
A subsequent step is that of pouring a polymer (S13) onto the mold. The polymer will form the “positive” of the structure, and can be a material such as PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane), PFPE (perfluoropolyether), SIFEL® (a fluorocarbon siloxane rubber precursor by Shin Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd) or parylene (a coating material). After pouring of the polymer, vacuum can be formed in the structure to better insert the polymer into the structure and to remove air out of the structure. The polymer is then cured (by heat, light etc.) and solidified (S14). The build wax mold (“negative”) is then melted away (S15) to provide the desired microfluidic device geometry.
In accordance with the present disclosure, holes in the wax mold can be created for the introduction of steel pins to connect input or output tubing. The steel pins can be melted to the wax, glued or attached by slip fit.
According to a first embodiment, wax columns (i.e. negatives of a hole) can be formed in the build wax during the printing process of the negative (S16). The polymer will then be poured so that a portion of the wax column remains out of the polymer. In this way, when the build wax is melted away, holes will be formed.
According to a second embodiment, holes can be formed through punching (S17) in the final polymer chip.
According to a third embodiment, metal pins can be introduced or soldered into the build wax mold (S18), and later pouring the polymer over the build wax mold by leaving part of the pin above the top level of the polymer. After that, once the wax has been melted, the pin is pulled out. Typically, the wax mold will be constructed with areas specifically made to have the pins soldered in. The pins can be melted to the specifically made areas, glued or attached by slip fit.
A variation of this embodiment can also be provided, where the structure does not depend on glass in order to allow precise separation of the various components of the microfluidic chip. According to this embodiment, during formation of the mold, two additional build surfaces, a top surface and a bottom surface, are formed (S19). Reference can be made, for example, to surfaces 70 and 80 of
As mentioned above, one type of polymer that can be used is SIFEL®. SIFEL® is a liquid fluoroelastomer (fluorocarbon siloxane rubber precursor) that combines the characteristics of silicone and fluorine and softens into a rubbery texture when heated. Two types of SIFEL®—glue and non-glue—are commercially available. Punching of SIFEL® to form holes is not possible. Therefore, a possible way of forming holes in-this embodiment is that of forming them in the build wax mold, as described above. Alternatively, a metal pin of a smaller diameter of the pin to be later used for fluid introduction can be soldered. In order to do so, a solder point is designed and later formed in the build wax mold. SIFEL® is then poured from the top, in order to avoid its formation in the solder point. Presence of pin holes in an embodiment where glue-type SIFEL® is used is preferred, because glue-type SIFEL® will become attached to the glass support, thus precluding an exit way for the build wax upon dissolution. In this case, the build wax will come out through the pin holes. On the other hand, in case of non-glue-type SIFEL®, the build wax filled with SIFEL® can be detached from the substrate, and then taken out of the bottom of the structure.
Use of a PFPE polymer is similar to use of non-glue type SIFEL®. It should also be noted that both SIFEL® and PFPE usually cannot be bonded well to glass. In order to overcome this obstacle, a plastic clamp is machined, to allow for the pins or steel pins to protrude. Pressure is then applied to seal the glass to the polymer through the plastic clamp. The person skilled in the art will understand that the amount of pressure to be applied should be such that the polymer is sealed to the glass without crushing the microfluidic channels or valves formed in the structure.
According to a further embodiment, as also shown in
In order to provide the structure with pinholes, several choices can be made. According to a first choice, holes can be punched in the polymer chip—through both parylene and the polymer—after the build wax has been melted out, similarly to what shown in step S17 of
In accordance with a further embodiment, a method for parylene coating of two-dimensional microfluidic channels is disclosed, as also shown in
In a first step a substrate is coated with a thin layer of parylene for better adhesion for the next lithographic molds (S26). In order to provide a clean surface, the substrate surface is first dipped in 5% HF (fluoridic acid) and then treated using oxygen plasma (S27). The oxygen plasma can be generated in a Technic® parallel plate reactive ion etcher (MicroRIE) with a 170 W RF power, 20 sccm O2 flow rate, and a 30 s etching time. After plasma cleaning, an adhesion promoter (e.g., promoter A-174 from Specialty Coating Systems) can be applied (S28) to the surface to further enhance good adhesion between the parylene (see below)and the substrate. The substrate is then coated with a thin layer of parylene film of thickness between about 100 nm and about 2 micrometer. Coating promotes adhesion and provides passivation.
In a second step, a lithographic mold is formed (S25) in the same manner as described above and in
In a third step, the treated mold is conformally coated with a layer of parylene (S29).
In a fourth step, the mold is immersed in heated acetone (S30) to remove the sacrificial photoresist. The extremely thin parylene channels can be used as is. Such embodiment can be particularly useful for imaging what is inside the channels under an optical microscope or in an environmental SEM (scanning electron microscope), because the parylene is thin, so that a significant portion of the electron beam can penetrate the thin film and generate a scanning electron image.
Optionally, a thin layer of polymer (PDMS, PFPE or SIFEL®) is spinned over the parylene coated mold and cured (S31). The photoresist is then removed with heated acetone. In this way, a structurally robust channel is formed, still maintaining the structural properties of the polymer but protected from chemicals by the parylene.
Optionally, a control layer can be aligned and bonded with the polymer layer over the parylene coated channel in order to form a two-dimensional valve.
In accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure, the valve shown in
The maximum pressure range as well as the control over the valve actuating pressure compares very favorably with traditional planar valves constructed through multi-layer soft lithography. In comparison, the multi-layer soft lithography layers in accordance with the present disclosure delaminate at approximately 82 kPa (12 psi).
The applicants have designed a three-dimensional normally open valve geometry. The pneumatic 3-D valve of the present disclosure was also tested in solvents that are known to deteriorate PDMS channels. For example, the valve performance was evaluated when metering toluene, a material known to result in swelling of PDMS and deterioration and distortion of conventional PDMS fluidic systems. As the 3-D valve definition procedure in accordance with the present disclosure does not rely on multi-layer PDMS films that could delaminate, no leakage or deterioration could be observed in the 3-D valve after exposure to toluene. Although the tenability suffered due to swelling over time, the valve performance was not influenced.
As already mentioned above, the two surfaces 70 and 80 are taken out during the melting step. In addition, a further portion of the exposed top surface and the exposed bottom surface of the structure is cut, to allow separation of the microfluidic channels once the positive of the structure is obtained. Cutting of the further top and bottom portions will prevent undesired fluid contact among the various channels.
From this image, it is clear that large plumbing systems consisting of integrated arrays of microfluidic valves can be constructed by 3-D microvalve definition. In such a valve network, the density of fluidic elements can be significantly increased beyond what is available for more traditional 2-D microfluidic networks constructed from PDMS. In such 3-D fluidic chips, the smallest flow pressure line that can be defined by the lateral and vertical resolution of the wax printer is 115 microns wide by 12.5 microns high (although some difficult geometries require more material strength and must be made larger). These dimensions match well with geometries suitable for the definition of useful microfluidic “laboratory on a chip” applications.
Three-dimensional printing in accordance with the present disclosure eliminates the need for bonding the pneumatic control layer to the flow layer as both are formed in the same monolithic mold. This enables the use of elastomers that can be bonded only once or do not satisfy the adhesion requirements of multi-layer fabrication such as the highly solvent-resistant perfluoropolyether (PFPE) The elimination of multiple bonding steps also avoids the need for aligning multiple elastomeric layers and compensation for polymer shrinkage. Additionally, components can be embedded into the device in a three-dimensional fashion and pin input holes can be formed as part of the mold in situations where punching would crack brittle polymer layers. Solvent-resistant microfluidic components enable the use of organic solvents incompatible with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), thus opening up a vast array of potential microfluidics applications in organic chemistry and combinatorial synthesis.
The embedding of the components into the device works as follows: 1) The wax substrate is built up on the glass substrate; 2) When the mold reaches the layer where the embedded item (e.g. a filter) is to be placed, the machine is paused and the mold removed; 3) The item is melted to the wax with the use of a heater (similarly to a soldering iron) and made level with the last layer printed; 4) The mold is put back in the machine and it continues building. As the next layer is built, the deposited liquid wax is bonded to the embedded piece and becomes one with the mold; 5) The mold is processed as before, with the filter being embedded in the final polymer. This embedding process works similarly also with the parylene embodiment.
While several illustrative embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in the above description, numerous variations and alternative embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art. Such variations and alternative embodiments are contemplated, and can be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.
The present application claims the benefit of provisional application 60/634,668 for “Replication Molding of Three-Dimensional Valves” filed on Dec. 8, 2004 and provisional application 60/634,667 for “On-Chip Refrigerator and Heat Exchanger” filed on Dec. 8, 2004, both of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. The present application is also related to U.S. application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No. 622900-0) for “Thermal Management Techniques, Apparatus and Methods for Use in Microfluidic Devices” and to U.S. application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No. 620351-4) for “Parylene Coated Microfluidic Components and Methods for Fabrication Thereof,” filed on the same date of the present application, also incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
This invention was made with U.S. Government support under contract No. R01 H6002644 awarded by the National Institute of Health. The U.S. Government has certain rights in this invention.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60634668 | Dec 2004 | US | |
60634667 | Dec 2004 | US |