Disposable Miniature Check Valve Design Suitable for Scalable Manufacturing

Area of Science:

• Engineering
• Materials Science
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Miniature fluidic systems require reliable passive valves.
• Existing microvalves often involve complex, integrated manufacturing processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel, passively operated miniature check valve.
• To demonstrate its manufacturability using standard techniques for low-cost applications.
• To characterize its performance, including cracking pressure and leakage.

Main Methods:

• The valve design utilizes a hollow cylindrical core with an elastomeric sleeve covering a side port.
• Adjustable cracking pressure is achieved by controlling core/sleeve dimensions and sleeve material properties.
• Performance was evaluated by measuring cracking pressure across a range of PSI and assessing backflow leakage.

Main Results:

• Reproducible cracking pressures from 2 to 20 PSI were achieved with different materials and dimensions.
• Cracking pressure showed minimal variation with flow rate.
• No backflow leakage was observed up to 30 PSI, with internal volumes as low as 3-4 μL.

Conclusions:

• The developed check valve is suitable for low-cost, disposable systems, particularly in medical devices.
• Its independent manufacturability and ease of integration offer advantages over in-situ fabricated microvalves.
• The valve's performance is robust and controllable for diverse fluidic applications.