J Phys Chem B. 2018 Apr 12;122(14):4067-4076. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b01013. Epub 2018 Mar 26.

Microfluidic Droplet-Based Tool To Determine Phase Behavior of a Fluid System with High Composition Resolution.

The journal of physical chemistry. B

Blake J Bleier, Shelley L Anna, Lynn M Walker

PMID: 29547299 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b01013

Abstract

The goal of this work is to develop a simple microfluidic approach to characterizing liquid-liquid phase behavior in complex aqueous mixtures of organics and salts. We take advantage of the permeability of inexpensive microfluidic devices to concentrate aqueous solutions on chip. We demonstrate a technique that allows phase boundaries to be identified with high compositional resolution and small sample volumes. Droplets of single phase samples are produced on-chip and concentrated in the device beyond the phase boundary line to map system phase behavior. Results are demonstrated on ammonium sulfate and organic (poly(ethylene oxide)) aqueous solutions and compared with macroscopic and literature results.

Publication Types

• Journal Article
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't