Electroosmotic Flow in a Biochip
Miniature laboratories are required to efficiently analyze the information in human DNA. Such laboratories could facilitate tailor-made diagnoses and treatment of hereditary diseases for each individual.One problem that arises in these lab-on-a-chip devices lies in the transport of the liquid samples and other solutions, which move very small channels. One way of transporting the fluid in the samples is through the use of electrokinetic effects, where the charged ions in the solutions are subjected to an electric field. These ions are able to drag the entire solution through the channels in the biochip from one analysis point to the others.
This example models the electroosmotic flow in a biochip. The displacement of the fluid takes place through the presence of a charged solution at the walls of the chip's channels, which migrates as an electric field is applied. The electroosmotic flow in the model couples the electric field to the Stokes Flow equations at the boundaries.
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Surface and streamline plot showing the velocity field. |
Engineering Fields
- Momentum Transfer & CFD
Application Areas
- Fluid Mechanics (CFD)
- Electrochemistry
- Chemical Engineering