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Two microchannel manufacturing methods—xurography of double-sided tape and glass etching (lithography and wet etching)—were compared using DNA melting analysis. A heterozygous mutation (3 base-pair deletion) was distinguished from wild type (normal) DNA in 10 nL (xurography and glass etching) and 1 nL (xurography) volumes. The results of the 10 nL...
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A simple, cheap and rapid method is developed to fabricate glass-based microfluidic devices with dry film photoresists (DFR) as pattern transfer masks for wet etching. In this method, the DFR mask for wet etching can be easily achieved by a one-step lamination, and no expensive facilities and materials are used; therefore, both the difficulty and t...
A simple, cheap and rapid method is developed to fabricate glass-based microfluidic devices with dry film photoresists (DFR) as pattern transfer masks for wet etching. In this method, the DFR mask for wet etching can be easily achieved by a one-step lamination, and no expensive facilities and materials are used; therefore, both the difficulty and t...
Citations
... Therefore, microdevices fabricated using this method are cheaper. For example, it was estimated that six tape-bonded microchips cost less than $2.00 (Greer et al. 2007). ...
Microfluidic devices have been conventionally fabricated using traditional photolithography or through the use of soft lithography both of which require multiple complicated steps and a clean room setup. Xurography is an alternative rapid prototyping method which has been used to fabricate microfluidic devices in less than 20-30 minutes. The method is used to pattern two-dimensional pressure-sensitive adhesives, polymer sheets, and metal films using a cutting plotter and these layers are bonded together using methods including adhesive, thermal, and solvent bonding. This review discusses the working principle of xurography along with a critical analysis of parameters affecting the patterning process, various materials patterned using xurography, and their applications. Xurography can be used in the fabrication of microfluidic devices using four main approaches: making multiple layered devices, fabrication of micromolds, making masks, and integration of electrodes into microfluidic devices. We have also briefly discuss the bonding methods for assembling the two-dimensional patterned layers. Due to its simplicity and the ability to easily integrate multiple materials, Xurography is likely to grow in prominence as a method for fabrication of microfluidic devices.
... Our work builds on the excellent advancements of others using dry-film adhesive tape technology. Dry-film adhesives have been used to micropattern and deposit materials; 18 create devices between glass, 19,20 wax, 21 and polymers; 22,23 create pneumatic valves in 3D fluidics; 24 and facilitate cell culture; 25 and as an intermediary layer to seal channels. 26,27 This work leverages several key advantages of dry film adhesives including simple patterning with craft and laser cutters 28 and adhesiveness to many surfaces. ...
Integrating microfluidic mixers into lab-on-a-chip devices remains challenging yet important for numerous applications including dilutions, extractions, addition of reagents or drugs, and particle synthesis. High-efficiency mixers utilize large or intricate geometries that are difficult to manufacture and co-implement with lab-on-a-chip processes, leading to cumbersome two-chip solutions. We present a universal dry-film microfluidic mixing sticker that can retrofit pre-existing microfluidics and maintain high mixing performance over a range of Reynolds numbers and input mixing ratios. To attach our pre-mixing sticker module, remove the backing material and press the sticker onto an existing microfluidic/substrate. Our innovation centers around the multilayer use of laser-cut commercially available silicone-adhesive-coated polymer sheets as microfluidic layers to create geometrically complex, easy to assemble designs that can be adhered to a variety of surfaces, namely, existing microfluidic devices. Our approach enabled us to assemble the traditional yet difficult to manufacture “F-mixer” in minutes and conceptually extend this design to create a novel space-saving spiral F-mixer. Computational fluid dynamic simulations and experimental results confirmed that both designs maintained high performance for 0.1 < Re < 10 and disparate input mixing ratios of 1:10. We tested the integration of our system by using the pre-mixer to fluorescently tag proteins encapsulated in an existing microfluidic. When integrated with another microfluidic, our pre-mixing sticker successfully combined primary and secondary antibodies to fluorescently tag micropatterned proteins with high spatial uniformity, unlike a traditional pre-mixing “T-mixer” sticker. Given the ease of this technology, we anticipate numerous applications for point-of-care devices, microphysiological-systems-on-a-chip, and microfluidic-based biomedical research.
... In 2006, Bartholomeusz et al. introduced Xurography, a rapid prototyping method for fabricating microstructures with a cutting plotter (Bartholomeusz et al. 2005) which is utilized in many applications (Greer et al. 2007;Martínez-López et al. 2016;Speller et al. 2019;Mete and Gul 2020;Ferreira et al. 2021). Simplicity and agility are two advantages that are beneficial to applications that use Xurography with the help of a cutting blade to structure a thin film (PET, PTFE, double-sided PSA, PMMA, etc.). ...
In this paper, the conventional 2D H-filter is modified to 3D multi-layer structures fabricated by low-cost xurography. The extraction efficiency was studied experimentally for different 3D structures and then compared with conventional 2D H-filter. Numerical simulations were performed to model the diffusion flow in the proposed H-filters, showing a good agreement with the experimental observations. Results show that 3D H-filters have higher extraction efficiency at the same Reynolds number. Moreover, these structures could benefit low-cost and commercial applications due to their higher efficiency at smaller sizes.
... Alternate microfabrication techniques such as injection molding that enable rapid prototyping also exist [7,13] but are more suited for large-scale industrial production and lack the low start-up cost required for widespread use. Subtractive manufacturing processes, such as dry and wet etching [14,15], micro-milling [16], laser-cutting [17], xurography [18] and air-blasting [19] have demonstrated rapid microfabrication capabilities with different degrees of success however these techniques have certain limitations which currently outweighs the demonstrated advantages for microfluidic chip fabrication. Etching, xerography, and laser cutting produce curved, valley-like channels that are often imprecise for microfluidic applications [20,21]. ...
Stereolithography based 3D printing of microfluidics for prototyping has gained a lot of attention due to several advantages such as fast production, cost-effectiveness, and versatility over traditional photolithography-based microfabrication techniques. However, existing consumer focused SLA 3D printers struggle to fabricate functional microfluidic devices due to several challenges associated with micron-scale 3D printing. Here, we explore the origins and mechanism of the associated failure modes followed by presenting guidelines to overcome these challenges. The prescribed method works completely with existing consumer class inexpensive SLA printers without any modifications to reliably print PDMS cast microfluidic channels with channel sizes as low as ~75 μm and embedded channels with channel sizes as low ~200 μm. We developed a custom multi-resin formulation by incorporating Polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) and Ethylene glycol polyether acrylate (EGPEA) as the monomer units to achieve micron sized printed features with tunable mechanical and optical properties. By incorporating multiple resins with different mechanical properties, we were able to achieve spatial control over the stiffness of the cured resin enabling us to incorporate both flexible and rigid components within a single 3D printed microfluidic chip. We demonstrate the utility of this technique by 3D printing an integrated pressure-actuated pneumatic valve (with flexible cured resin) in an otherwise rigid and clear microfluidic device that can be fabricated in a one-step process from a single CAD file. We also demonstrate the utility of this technique by integrating a fully functional finger-actuated microfluidic pump. The versatility and accessibility of the demonstrated fabrication method have the potential to reduce our reliance on expensive and time-consuming photolithographic techniques for microfluidic chip fabrication and thus drastically lowering our barrier to entry in microfluidics research.
... Craft cutting (i.e., Xurography) has been demonstrated to be an accessible, cleanroom free, and rapid method for fabricating microfluidic devices out of adhesive vinyl films using a cutting plotter (Tan et al., 2001;Greer et al., 2007;Pinto et al., 2014). However, this method suffers from low accuracy for microfluidic dimensions smaller than 500 µm, thus, limiting its applicability to a narrow range of use cases (Pinto et al., 2014;Faustino et al., 2016). ...
Droplet generators are at the heart of many microfluidic devices developed for life science applications but are difficult to tailor to each specific application. The high fabrication costs, complex fluid dynamics, and incomplete understanding of multi-phase flows make engineering droplet-based platforms an iterative and resource-intensive process.
First, we demonstrate the suitability of desktop micromills for low-cost rapid prototyping of thermoplastic microfluidic devices. With this method, microfluidic devices are made in 1 - 2 hours, have a minimum feature size of 75 μm, and cost less than $10. These devices are biocompatible and can accommodate integrated electrodes for sophisticated droplet manipulations, such as droplet sensing, sorting, and merging.
Next, we leverage low-cost rapid prototyping to characterize the performance of microfluidic flow-focusing droplet generators. Specifically, the effect of eight design parameters on droplet diameter, generation rate, generation regime, and polydispersity are quantified. This was achieved through orthogonal design of experiments, a large-scale experimental dataset, and statistical analysis.
Finally, we capitalize on the created dataset and machine learning to achieve accurate performance prediction and design automation of flow-focusing devices. The developed capabilities are captured in a software tool that converts high-level performance specifications to a device that delivers the desired droplet diameter and generation rate. This tool effectively eliminates the need for resource-intensive design iterations to achieve functional droplet generators. We also demonstrate the tool’s generalizability to new fluid combinations with transfer learning.
We expect that our newly established framework on rapid prototyping, performance characterization informed by design of experiments, and machine learning guided design automation to enable extension to other microfluidic components and to facilitate widespread adoption of droplet microfluidics in the life sciences.
... Using this technique expensive and time-consuming process of photolithography may be altered with significantly simpler cutting process. In the recent period, xurography has been used in a wide range of applications from electronic passive components (Stojanovic et al. 2019), biology (Kojic et al. 2019;Xiao et al. 2019) and various biomedical applications (Greer et al. 2007). The xurography technique usually uses PVC foils as a substrate as well as an active layer. ...
Microfluidic chips have become attractive devices with enormous potential for a wide range of applications. The optimal performances of microfluidic platforms cannot be achieved using a single fabrication technique. The method of obtaining the dominant characteristic of a microfluidic chip is to combine the best qualities of different technological processes and materials. In this paper, we propose a novel, cost-effective, hybrid microfluidic chip manufacturing technologies that combine 3D printing process and xurographic technique. The standard Y-mixer was 3D printed using thermoplastic polymers, while the enclosure of the channel was achieved using the PVC lamination foils. The influence of the fabrication parameters, materials and bonding layers on the channel dimensions, performances and durability in the process of chip realization have been analysed and tested. Optimized parameters have been established for 3D fabrication process. The potential application in biomedicine and material science has been demonstrated on the example with nickel-titanium (NiTi) orthodontic archwire.
... A fine flow channel was produced by laminating multiple polymer films engraved with a cutting plotter (Bartholomeusz, et al., 2005, Do, et al., 2011, Yuen and Goral, 2010. A double-sided tape was sandwiched between glass slides to make a channel (Jenny, et al., 2007). Since films were used directly as a flow channel material, the methods were not suitable for introducing and observing a living sample from the viewpoints of low oxygen permeability and poor biocompatibility. ...
The facilitation of access to rapid and low-cost microfabrication methods is essential for improving the development cycles of testing new chip designs and research ideas. A simple fabrication method of biocompatible microchannels with a height of 0.3 mm is significant for biological scientists to study animal and plant cells (∼0.1 mm). Microfabrication using a cutting plotter and a knife blade provides a rapid and low-cost technology. In a previous study, designed cut pieces were used as a channel mold, but they were easy to deform during handling, and therefore the large-scale production of channels was difficult. Moreover, it is required to characterize the cutting process of 0.3-mm-thick sheets with a low-cost plotter. Here, we report the development of an easy fabrication method of 0.3-mm-high polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microchannels based on a desktop cutting plotter (300 USD) and an engraved sheet as follows. 1) A 0.3-mm thick sheet of cast-coated paper or silicone rubber was used as a mold material and patterns were created with a cutting plotter. 2) It was pasted to a double-sided tape to make a master mold of a flow channel. 3) The mold was replicated in PDMS to make a negative mold. 4) This PDMS mold was again transferred to a final PDMS chip. 5) It was bonded to a glass substrate to form a PDMS flow channel. We characterized the pattern transition of rectangular shapes from an engraved sheet mold to a final PDMS channel, that is essential for the design of a channel using this method. I- and Y-shaped microchannels (height: 0.3 mm) were fabricated and fluorescent particles and 0.2-mm diameter Volvox were introduced into the channels to show their performances.
... This technique provides many advantages, as it does not require special clean room facilities and is extremely low-cost. The design of a microfluidic device is reduced to the use of a CAD tool, and production takes just a few minutes (Greer et al., 2007, Islam et al., 2015. ...
A critical need exists to develop rapid, in situ, and real-time tools to monitor the impact of pollution discharge toxicity on aquatic ecosystems. The present paper deals with the development of a novel, simple-to-use, low-cost, portable, and user-friendly algal biosensor. In this study, a complete and autonomous portable fluorimeter was developed to assess the A-chlorophyll fluorescence of microalgae, inserted by capillarity into low-cost and disposable xurography-based microfluidic chips. Three microalgae populations were used to develop the biosensor: Chlorella vulgaris, Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Biosensor feasibility and sensitivity parameters, such as algal concentration and light intensity, were optimized beforehand to calibrate the biosensor sensitivity with Diuron, a pesticide known to be very toxic for microalgae. Finally, the biosensor was employed in 10 aqueous urban polluted samples (7 urban wet-weather discharges and 3 wastewaters) in order to prove its reliability, reproducibility, and performance in the detection of toxic discharges in the field.
... This technic provides many advantages, as it does not require special clean room facilities, and is extremely low cost. The design of a microfluidic device is reduced to the use of a CAD tool, and production takes _________________________Antoine Gosset -thèse de l'INSA Lyon__________________________ just a few minutes (Greer et al., 2007, Islam et al., 2015. Moreover, is it possible to design microfluidic chips using only capillarity properties to insert and transport any aqueous liquid (such as algal solutions) without any external pump, avoiding cumbersome gear deployment in situ. ...
Les Rejets Urbains par Temps de Pluie (RUTP) représentent une pollution très complexe et variable de par la diversité des évènements pluvieux et des bassins versants lessivés. Les RUTP sont, dans la majorité des cas, rejetés dans des milieux récepteurs aquatiques péri-urbains tels que les lacs, rivières ou eaux souterraines, sans traitement d’épuration. La pollution déversée, qui peut être très diluée, est le plus souvent liée à des évènements relativement courts et difficiles à prévoir. L’impact écotoxique des RUTP peut donc s’avérer difficile à évaluer, en particulier par des mesures directes in situ.Parmi les organismes utilisés en écotoxicologie, les microalgues sont extrêmement intéressantes. En effet, elles constituent la base des réseaux trophiques, sont sensibles à une large gamme de polluants et sont très sensibles à la présence de substances exogènes.C’est la raison pour laquelle nous avons développé dans un premier temps une batterie de biomarqueurs cellulaires sur microalgue (perturbation de la physiologie (comme la photosynthèse) de Chlorella vulgaris), afin de montrer leur intérêt pour détecter rapidement et sensiblement l’impact toxique d’échantillons de RUTP collectés sur la région Lyonnaise. La réponse de ces biomarqueurs a été comparée en laboratoire à une batterie de bioessais écotoxicologiques monospécifiques classiques sur microalgues et microcrustacés (e.g. essais de croissance, reproduction).Dans un second temps, nous avons travaillé à l’adaptation de ces biomarqueurs afin de créer des outils de détection in situ. Des biocapteurs à cellules entières, basés sur une mesure de la perturbation de la photosynthèse (fluorescence chlorophyllienne) de microalgues, ont été développés. Pour leur création, deux techniques de mise en contact bio-récepteur/transducteur ont été testées : (i) la double encapsulation des microalgues dans des hydrogels alginate/silice utilisant un procédé sol-gel, et (ii) l’inclusion des microalgues dans des puces microfluidiques fabriquées par xurographie. Une station portative autonome de terrain a été élaborée et testée avec efficacité pour effectuer des mesures in situ de la toxicité des RUTP, et des milieux aquatiques urbains contaminés.Ce travail de thèse présente de nombreuses perspectives concernant une meilleure connaissance de l’impact des RUTP sur les organismes aquatiques. Il apporte également des réponses à la problématique du développement des biocapteurs à cellules algales entières pour la surveillance environnementale.
... Razor-printing (xurography) can be used as an ultra-rapid microscale fabrication method that is growing in popularity [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] and complements other microfabrication approaches such as soft-lithography, micromilling, laser-cutting, and 3D printing. [12][13][14][15][16][17] Razor-printing allows device components to be cut or "printed" from sheets of material (e.g., polymers and double-sided adhesive tapes) using a cutting plotter that is operationally similar to a standard home inkjet printer with X-Y resolutions as precise as 20 µm. ...
... Suitability of Tape for cell-based microscale device fabrication -Tape-based razor-printing has gained momentum as a microscale device fabrication method. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11]18,19,21,41 However, a particular choice of biocompatible adhesive tape has not been identified or embraced as a legitimate option for cell-based applications. Without such an option, future application of this powerful method for cell-based applications will be limited. ...
Tape-based razor-printing is a flexible and affordable ultra-rapid prototyping approach for microscale device fabrication However, integration of this prototyping approach into cell-based assay development has been limited to proof of principle demonstrations. This is in large part due to lack of an established or well-characterized option for biocompatible adhesive tape. Without such an option, integration of these areas will remain unexplored. Therefore, to address this critical hurdle, we characterized microscale devices made using a potentially biocompatible double-sided adhesive, ARCare 90106. We validated tape-based device performance against 96-well plates and PDMS microdevices with respect to cell viability, hydrophobic small molecule sequestration, the potential for leaching compounds, use in fluorescence microscopy, and outgassing (bubble formation). Results supported the tape as a promising tool for future cell-based assay development. Therefore, we subsequently demonstrated specific strengths enabled by the ultra-rapid (< 1hr per prototype) and affordable (~$1,200 cutting plotter, < $0.05 per prototype) approach. Specifically, data demonstrate the ability to integrate disparate materials for advanced sticker-device functionality such as bonding of polystyrene devices to glass substrates for microscopy applications, inclusion of membranes, and incorporation of different electrospun biomaterials into a single device. Likewise, the approach allowed rapid adoption by uninitiated users. Overall, this study provides a necessary and unique contribution to the largely separate fields of tape-based razor-printing and cell-based microscale assay development by addressing a critical barrier to widespread integration and adoption while also demonstrating the potential for new and future applications.
