BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION (1) Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a valve-less micro pump structure and a method for producing the same, and more particularly to the structure that includes an elastomer main body made of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS).
(2) Description of the Prior Art
In micro electric mechanical engineering, particularly that of biomedical field, micro fluid-detection and control components are crucial in utilization related to the precision automation industry. Among all the micro components, the micro pump as a fluid-control element is one of the key elements to make a micro fluid mechanism work.
In the art, micro pumps with micro valve structures are usually made of a silicon-base material by a semiconductor manufacturing process. These micro pumps often have the following weakness.
1. The semiconductor manufacturing process for producing the micro pumps cannot meet a rapid production requirement.
2. Cost for the silicon-base material for producing the micro pumps is high.
3. For the silicon-base material for producing the micro pumps is brittle, inherent problems in fatigue and pitting can never be neglected.
Also, it is well known that a brittle material is not suitable for application in the biomedical engineering.
4. The brittle silicon-base material for producing the micro pumps is vulnerable to impact and thus crack.
5. The silicon-base material for producing the micro pumps has poor bio-compatibility, and so limits the application of the micro electric mechanical components.
Therefore, to overcome various disadvantages from adopting the silicon-base material to the micro pumps by a semiconductor manufacturing process, a substitute material and an improved method for forming the micro pumps are definitely welcome to the skilled persons in the art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a PDMS valve-less micro pump structure and a method for producing the same, in which the PDMS material is widely used to have the production of the micro pumps to be simply structured, low cost, flexible, and more bio-compatible.
The PDMS valve-less micro pump structure includes a PDMS body, a membrane, and a piezoelectric (PZT) actuator.
The PDMS body, as an elastomer made of a PDMS material, has a contour surface. The contour surface further is curved to form a main cavity, a lead-in cavity and a lead-out cavity. The lead-in cavity can be located aside to the main cavity and in spatial communication with the main cavity through a lead-in nozzle. Also, the lead-out cavity can be located also aside to the main cavity and in spatial communication with the main cavity through a lead-out nozzle.
The membrane having a center hole is layered on top of the PDMS body (i.e. on the contour surface) to seal the lead-in cavity, the lead-in nozzle, the lead-out nozzle and the lead-out cavity, but have the center hole positioned on top of the main cavity so as to expose the main cavity through the center hole.
The PZT actuator is mounted on top of the membrane by a predetermined peripheral sealing way that can seal the main cavity by covering the center hole of the membrane.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the membrane of the PDMS valve-less micro pump structure can be made of a PDMS material, and preferably have a thickness ranged between 200 μm and 300 μm.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the PZT actuator can further include a PZT plate, a copper plate layered under the PZT plate, an insulation layer sandwiched between the PZT plate and the copper plate to avoid electrically shorting in between, and a bottom layer layered under the copper plate to prohibit direct contact between the copper plate and a fluid in the main cavity. Preferably, the insulation layer and the bottom layer are both layers made of the PDMS material.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the predetermined peripheral sealing way to mount the PZT actuator onto the membrane can be a sealing way having supports at nodes of the PZT actuator, having supports at a periphery of the PZT actuator, or having bonding at the periphery of the PZT actuator.
In the present invention, the PDMS valve-less micro pump structure, i.e. the PDMS body as described above, can be produced in accordance with a method having the following steps of:
(1) Preparing a die, the die having a profiling protrusion forming on a top surface to configure concavely the main cavity, the lead-in cavity, the lead-in nozzle, the lead-out cavity, and the lead-out nozzle of the PDMS body;
(2) Pouring a PDMS material in a fluid state onto the top surface of the die by covering fully the profiling protrusion;
(3) Performing a predetermined baking process on the die and the PDMS material so as to solidify the PDMS material for forming the PDMS body; and
(4) Removing the solidified PDMS material from the die to complete the production of the PDMS body, i.e. the PDMS valve-less micro pump structure of the present invention.
In the present invention, the die for forming the PDMS body is preferably made of a polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) material.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the fluid-state PDMS material for forming the PDMS body can be prepared by mixing a Sylgard 184 base (having short-chain PDMS molecules) and a Sylgard 184 agent at a 10:1 ratio. Preferably, the mixing can be achieved by blending the Sylgard 184 base and the Sylgard 184 agent in a magnetic stirrer for a predetermined period at a predetermined speed and then slowing the speed of the magnetic stirrer to de-bubble the PDMS material.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the predetermined baking process for solidifying the fluid-state PDMS material on the die can be a vacuum-baking process including a 20-30 minute low-pressure de-bubbling step, a heating step at 110-130° C. for 2-4 hours, and a free cooling step.
In the present invention, the PDMS valve-less micro pump can be produced by a method comprising the following steps of:
(1) Preparing the PDMS body, the PDMS body already having the main cavity, the lead-in cavity, the lead-in nozzle, the lead-out cavity and the lead-out nozzle formed concavely on the contour surface of the PDMS body;
(2) Adhering the membrane having the center hole onto the contour surface of the PDMS body by having the membrane seal the lead-in cavity, the lead-in nozzle, the lead-out nozzle and the lead-out cavity but having the center hole pf the membrane positioned on top of the main cavity;
(3) Mounting the PZT actuator onto the membrane by a predetermined peripheral sealing way so as to seal the main cavity that is exposed in the previous step; and
(4) Performing a baking process to solidify the combination of the PDMS body, the membrane, and the PZT actuator.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the predetermined baking process to confirm the combination among the PDMS body, the membrane and the actuator can be is a vacuum-baking process including a heating step at 110-130° C. for 2-4 hours.
All these objects are achieved by the PDMS valve-less micro pump structure and the method for producing the same described below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The present invention will now be specified with reference to its preferred embodiment illustrated in the drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective exploded view of a preferred embodiment of the PDMS valve-less micro pump in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a preferred method for producing the PDMS body in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a preferred method for producing the valve-less micro pump in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a preferred valve-less micro pump in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 5 is an application state ofFIG. 4;
FIG. 6 is another application state ofFIG. 4;
FIG. 7 is a schematic view to show a predetermined sealing way for mounting the PZT actuator on the membrane in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 8 is a schematic view to show another predetermined sealing way for mounting the PZT actuator on the membrane in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 9 is a schematic view to show a further predetermined sealing way for mounting the PZT actuator on the membrane in accordance with the present invention; and
FIG. 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the PZT actuator of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The invention disclosed herein is directed to a PDMS valve-less micro pump structure and a method for producing the same. In the following description, numerous details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be appreciated by one skilled in the art that variations of these specific details are possible while still achieving the results of the present invention. In other instance, well-known components are not described in detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention.
Referring now toFIG. 1, a perspective exploded view of a preferred PDMS valve-less micro pump in accordance with the present invention is shown to mainly have aPDMS body11, amembrane12, and aPZT actuator13.
ThePDMS body11 of the present invention is an elastomer that can be made of a PDMS material. ThePDMS body11 has acontour surface110. As shown, thecontour surface110 is curved to form amain cavity111, a lead-incavity113 and a lead-out cavity112. The lead-incavity113 can be located aside (for example, left-hand side in the figure) to themain cavity111 and be in spatial communication (or say, in a channel-wise connection) with themain cavity111 through a lead-innozzle115 also formed in thePDMS body11. Similarly, the lead-out cavity112 can be located aside (for example, right-hand side in the figure) to themain cavity111 and in spatial communication with themain cavity111 through a lead-outnozzle114 formed in thePDMS body11.
In the present invention, the PDMS material is an elastic polymer featuring in hydrophilic and transparent property. The contact angle between a PDMS molecule and a water molecule is about 108 degree. For having an acceptable bio-compatibility, the PDMS material is much suitable for producing the bio-medical components. The PDMS material has an excellent electric-insulation property and a damper property to absorb any foreign impact. Also, the dielectric strength of the PDMS material is also acceptable to most applications. Importantly, the aforesaid properties of the PDMS material can be maintained under any environmental temperature and moisture situation.
The PDMS material itself is an inertial material that is damp to the O3and the ultraviolet ray. Yet, the PDMS material can be easily adhered to an ordinary smooth surface, for example a surface of a silicon wafer, a glass, or a PMMA object.
As shown inFIG. 1, the lead-incavity113 and the lead-out cavity112 are located to opposite sides of themain cavity111. However, such an arrangement doesn't imply that the present invention prohibits other arrangements of the lead-incavity113 and the lead-out cavity112 with respect to themain cavity111. Basically, any arrangement that separates the lead-incavity113 from the lead-out cavity112 around themain cavity111 can be acceptable to the present invention.
As shown, an end of the lead-innozzle115 that has a larger cross section is connected with the lead-incavity113, while another end having a smaller cross section is connected with themain cavity111. On the other hand, the end of the lead-outnozzle114 that has a larger cross section is connected with themain cavity111, while another end having a smaller cross section is connected with the lead-out cavity112.
InFIG. 1, themembrane12 of the present invention for adhering or layering on thecontour surface110 of thePDMS body11 has acenter hole121. Themembrane12 is used to seal or cover the lead-incavity113, the lead-innozzle115, the lead-outnozzle114 and the lead-out cavity112 so that the curved-in structures of the lead-incavity113, the lead-innozzle115, the lead-outnozzle114 and the lead-out cavity112 can be formed as flow channel structures. Also, it is noted that themain cavity111 is still exposed to themembrane12 by having thecenter hole121 of themembrane12 positioned right on top of themain cavity111.
In the present invention, themembrane12 is preferably made of a PDMS material, and preferably has a thickness ranged between 200 μm and 300 μm.
The PZT actuator13 of the present invention is mounted on top of themembrane12 by a predetermined peripheral sealing way that can seal themain cavity111 by sitting on or covering thecenter hole121 of themembrane12.
Referring now toFIG. 2, a flowchart for a preferred method for producing thePDMS body11 is shown. The method can include the following steps.
Step100: Preparing adie14. Thedie14 has aprofiling protrusion141 forming on a top surface of thedie14. By properly providing theprofiling protrusion141, the aforesaid concave structures of thePDMS body11 such as themain cavity111, the lead-incavity113, the lead-innozzle115, the lead-out cavity112, and the lead-outnozzle114 can be formed by the following molding.
Step200: Pouring a PDMS material in afluid state11 onto the top surface of the die14 by covering fully theprofiling protrusion141.
Step300: Performing a predetermined baking process on the assembly of thedie14 and thePDMS material11 so as to solidify thePDMS material11 for forming theaforesaid PDMS body11.
Step400: Removing the solidifiedPDMS material11 from the die14 to complete the production of thePDMS body11 for the PDMS valve-less micro pump of the present invention.
In the present invention, thedie14 for forming or molding thePDMS body11 is preferably made of a PMMA material.
In the present invention, the PDMS material can be obtained in a Sylgard 184 Silicone Elastomer Kit provided by the Dow Coing Company in the United States. In this kit, the PDMS material for molding thePDMS body11 can be prepared by mixing a Sylgard 184 base (having short-chain PDMS molecules) and a Sylgard 184 agent at a 10:1 ratio. Preferably, the mixing can be performed by blending the Sylgard 184 base and the Sylgard 184 agent in a magnetic stirrer for a predetermined period at a predetermined speed and then slowing the speed of the magnetic stirrer to de-bubble the fluid-state PDMS material.
In the present invention, the predetermined baking process for solidifying the fluid-state PDMS material11 molded on the die14 can be a vacuum-baking process that includes a 20-30 minute low-pressure de-bubbling step, a heating step at 110-130° C. for 2-4 hours, and a free cooling step for cooling down thePDMS material11 to the room temperature.
Referring now toFIG. 3, a flowchart for a preferred method for producing the PDMS valve-less micro pump in accordance with the present invention is shown. The method comprises the following steps.
Step500: Preparing thePDMS body11. ThePDMS body11 already has themain cavity111, the lead-incavity113, the lead-innozzle115, the lead-out cavity112 and the lead-outnozzle114 formed concavely on thecontour surface110 of thePDMS body11.
Step600: Adhering themembrane12 having thecenter hole121 onto thecontour surface110 of thePDMS body11. The adhering is done by having themembrane12 seal the lead-incavity113, the lead-innozzle115, the lead-outnozzle114 and the lead-out cavity112, but having thecenter hole121 of themembrane12 positioned on top of themain cavity111.
Step700: Mounting thePZT actuator13 on themembrane12 by a predetermined peripheral sealing way. Thereby, themain cavity111 can be sealed by thePZT actuator13 and thus form as a central tank of the fluid channel that includes in series the lead-incavity113, the lead-innozzle115, themain cavity111, the lead-outnozzle114 and the lead-out cavity112.
Step800: Performing a baking process to solidify the combination of thePDMS body11, themembrane12, and thePZT actuator13. After the baking, a production of the PDMS valve-less micro pump according to the present invention is done.
In the present invention, the predetermined baking process to confirm the combination among thePDMS body11, themembrane12 and theactuator13 can be also is a vacuum-baking process including a heating step at 110-130° C. for 2-4 hours.
Referring now toFIG. 4, a cross-section view of a preferred PDMS valve-less micro pump along line a-a ofFIG. 1 is shown, in which the lead-innozzle115 and the lead-outnozzle114 are not shown. InFIG. 4, a lead-inchannel116 and a lead-outchannel117 are constructed under the lead-incavity113 and the lead-out cavity112, respectively. The lead-inchannel116 is provided so that a fluid outside thePDMS body11 can be sent into and/or out off the lead-incavity113. Similarly, the lead-outchannel117 is there so that the fluid outside thePDMS body11 can be sent into and/or out off the lead-out cavity112.
In the present invention, for the PDMS material is a soft elastomer, the forming of the lead-inchannel116 and the lead-outchannel117 can be directly done by piecing a needle or a like piecing structure into thePDMS body11 at the application site of the micro pump. This channel-forming work is well known to a skilled person in the related art, and so details will be omitted herein.
As shown inFIG. 4, before the PDMS valve-less micro pump of the present invention works,proper wiring15 should also be established between the actuator13 and a foreign power device (not shown in the figure). Thereby, thePZT actuator13 can thus be controlled to perform its up-and-down action upon themain cavity111.
Referring now toFIG. 5, a down (or concave) state of thePZT actuator13 is shown by a dashedline13′. In this state, thePZT actuator13 is controlled to present aconcave configuration13′ so as to depress themain cavity111 or say to reduce the volume inside themain cavity111. Thereby, the fluid inside themain cavity111 would be squeezed out to both the lead-incavity113 and the lead-out cavity112 through the lead-innozzle115 and the lead-outnozzle114, respectively. For the directional arrangement of thenozzles114 and115 (referred toFIG. 1), the fluid amount qo leaving themain cavity111 through the lead-in nozzle1115, the lead-incavity113 and the lead-inchannel116 would be less than the fluid amount Qo leaving themain cavity111 through the lead-outnozzle114, the lead-out cavity112 and the lead-outchannel117.
Referring now toFIG. 6, an up (or convex) state of thePZT actuator13 is shown by another dashedline13″. In this state, thePZT actuator13 is controlled to present aconvex configuration13″ so as to dilate themain cavity111 or say to suddenly enlarge the volume inside themain cavity111. Thereby, the fluid in the lead-incavity113 and the lead-out cavity112 would be sucked into themain cavity111 through the lead-innozzle115 and the lead-outnozzle114, respectively. For the directional arrangement of thenozzles114 and115 (referred toFIG. 1), the fluid amount qin entering themain cavity111 through the lead-inchannel116, the lead-incavity113 and the lead-innozzle115 would be larger than the fluid amount Qin entering themain cavity111 through the lead-outchannel117, the lead-out cavity112 and the lead-outnozzle114.
In the present invention, after an operational stroke of the PZT actuator13 (including a down state and an up state), a preset amount of the fluid, (Qo-Qin) or (qin-qo), can then be transported from the lead-inchannel116 to the lead-outchannel117 of thePDMS body11.
In the present invention, thePZT actuator13 is fixed air-tightly onto themembrane12 through the predetermined peripheral sealing way. In practice, the predetermined peripheral sealing way can be a sealing way as shown inFIG. 7 that providesannular supports132 atnodes131 of thePZT actuator13, a sealing way as shown inFIG. 8 that providesannular supports132 at aperiphery133 of thePZT actuator13, or a sealing way as shown inFIG. 9 that providesannular bonding132 at theperiphery133 of thePZT actuator13. It should be noted that different sealing ways would cause different state appearance of thePZT actuator13. However, for thesupports132 in all three cases stand on themembrane12, so different sealing ways of thePZT actuator13 can only render minor difference in state appearance of thePZT actuator13. That is to say that the configuration of thePZT actuator13 shown inFIG. 5 orFIG. 6 can still prevail no matter what kind of the sealing way is applied.
Referring now toFIG. 10, an enlarged cross-sectional view of thePZT actuator13 of the present invention is shown. ThePZT actuator13 can include aPZT plate134 and acopper plate136 layered under thePZT plate135. In operation, for thePZT plate134 and thecopper plate135 need to connect withrespective electrodes138 so as to act as a positive end and a negative end, respectively, so aninsulation layer136 is introduced to be sandwiched between thePZT plate134 and thecopper plate135 for avoiding possible electrically shorting in between. On the other hand, to prevent thecopper plate135 from directly contacting the fluid in themain cavity111 of thePDMS body11, abottom layer137 coated or layered under thecopper plate135 is provided to prohibit such direct contact between thecopper plate135 and a fluid in themain cavity111.
Preferably in the present invention, both theinsulation layer136 and thebottom layer137 can be made of the PDMS material. By introducing the elastic PDMS material to wrap thecopper plate135 in a thin layer wise, thecopper plate135 can then have better flexibility to satisfy the concave and convex operations of the PDMS valve-less micro pump. Thereby, the throughput of the PDMS valve-less micro pumps can be increased.
In the present invention, prior to mounting thePZT actuator13 onto themembrane12, the bottom of thePZT actuator13 can be brushed and thus coat a layer of a PDMS solution for adhering thePZT actuator13.
In the present invention, for all the inner surfaces of the formed channel structures in the PDMS body are made as PDMS surfaces, the applicability of the PDMS valve-less micro pumps in the biomedical or chemical industry can be increased.
By providing the PDMS valve-less micro pump structure and the molding method for producing the same in accordance with the present invention, the production of the micro pumps can be simply, low cost, and flexible, and the product can be more bio-compatible.
While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.