Fabrication of Hard–Soft Microfluidic Devices Using Hybrid 3D Printing
Widely accessible, inexpensive, easy-to-use consumer 3D printers, such as desktop stereolithography (SLA) and fused-deposition modeling (FDM) systems are increasingly employed in prototyping and customizing miniaturized fluidic systems for diagnostics and research. However, these 3D printers are gen...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-06-01
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| Series: | Micromachines |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/11/6/567 |
| _version_ | 1797566345541320704 |
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| author | Carlos Ruiz Karteek Kadimisetty Kun Yin Michael G. Mauk Hui Zhao Changchun Liu |
| author_facet | Carlos Ruiz Karteek Kadimisetty Kun Yin Michael G. Mauk Hui Zhao Changchun Liu |
| author_sort | Carlos Ruiz |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Widely accessible, inexpensive, easy-to-use consumer 3D printers, such as desktop stereolithography (SLA) and fused-deposition modeling (FDM) systems are increasingly employed in prototyping and customizing miniaturized fluidic systems for diagnostics and research. However, these 3D printers are generally limited to printing parts made of only one material type, which limits the functionality of the microfluidic devices without additional assembly and bonding steps. Moreover, mating of different materials requires good sealing in such microfluidic devices. Here, we report methods to print hybrid structures comprising a hard, rigid component (clear polymethacrylate polymer) printed by a low-cost SLA printer, and where the first printed part is accurately mated and adhered to a second, soft, flexible component (thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer) printed by an FDM printer. The prescribed mounting and alignment of the first-printed SLA-printed hard component, and its pre-treatment and heating during the second FDM step, can produce leak-free bonds at material interfaces. To demonstrate the utility of such hybrid 3D-printing, we prototype and test three components: i) finger-actuated pump, ii) quick-connect fluid coupler, and iii) nucleic acid amplification test device with screw-type twist sealing for sample introduction. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T19:25:39Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-174747aa51ec469b940cf72b8daee0fb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-666X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T19:25:39Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Micromachines |
| spelling | doaj.art-174747aa51ec469b940cf72b8daee0fb2023-11-20T02:32:38ZengMDPI AGMicromachines2072-666X2020-06-0111656710.3390/mi11060567Fabrication of Hard–Soft Microfluidic Devices Using Hybrid 3D PrintingCarlos Ruiz0Karteek Kadimisetty1Kun Yin2Michael G. Mauk3Hui Zhao4Changchun Liu5Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 220 South 33rd St. Philadelphia, PA 19104-6315, USADepartment of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 220 South 33rd St. Philadelphia, PA 19104-6315, USADepartment of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 220 South 33rd St. Philadelphia, PA 19104-6315, USADepartment of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 220 South 33rd St. Philadelphia, PA 19104-6315, USADepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USADepartment of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, 220 South 33rd St. Philadelphia, PA 19104-6315, USAWidely accessible, inexpensive, easy-to-use consumer 3D printers, such as desktop stereolithography (SLA) and fused-deposition modeling (FDM) systems are increasingly employed in prototyping and customizing miniaturized fluidic systems for diagnostics and research. However, these 3D printers are generally limited to printing parts made of only one material type, which limits the functionality of the microfluidic devices without additional assembly and bonding steps. Moreover, mating of different materials requires good sealing in such microfluidic devices. Here, we report methods to print hybrid structures comprising a hard, rigid component (clear polymethacrylate polymer) printed by a low-cost SLA printer, and where the first printed part is accurately mated and adhered to a second, soft, flexible component (thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer) printed by an FDM printer. The prescribed mounting and alignment of the first-printed SLA-printed hard component, and its pre-treatment and heating during the second FDM step, can produce leak-free bonds at material interfaces. To demonstrate the utility of such hybrid 3D-printing, we prototype and test three components: i) finger-actuated pump, ii) quick-connect fluid coupler, and iii) nucleic acid amplification test device with screw-type twist sealing for sample introduction.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/11/6/5673D-printingmicrofluidicsprototypingpoint-of-care diagnosticsnucleic acid amplification test |
| spellingShingle | Carlos Ruiz Karteek Kadimisetty Kun Yin Michael G. Mauk Hui Zhao Changchun Liu Fabrication of Hard–Soft Microfluidic Devices Using Hybrid 3D Printing Micromachines 3D-printing microfluidics prototyping point-of-care diagnostics nucleic acid amplification test |
| title | Fabrication of Hard–Soft Microfluidic Devices Using Hybrid 3D Printing |
| title_full | Fabrication of Hard–Soft Microfluidic Devices Using Hybrid 3D Printing |
| title_fullStr | Fabrication of Hard–Soft Microfluidic Devices Using Hybrid 3D Printing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Fabrication of Hard–Soft Microfluidic Devices Using Hybrid 3D Printing |
| title_short | Fabrication of Hard–Soft Microfluidic Devices Using Hybrid 3D Printing |
| title_sort | fabrication of hard soft microfluidic devices using hybrid 3d printing |
| topic | 3D-printing microfluidics prototyping point-of-care diagnostics nucleic acid amplification test |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/11/6/567 |
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