A microparticle blood analogue suspension matching blood rheology

The handling of blood in vitro is demanding because of ethical, economical and safety issues. Although several Newtonian and non-Newtonian blood analogues are found in the literature, few studies have used particles to mimic red blood cells (RBCs) and built an analogue with similar rheological properties of blood. This work reports the development of a blood analogue suspension composed of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microparticles with an average diameter of ∼7 μm. High throughput production of PDMS particles is possible using a multi-stage membrane emulsification process; up to ∼6 mL of microparticles are manufactured in 3 hours. PDMS particles at a concentration of around 21% (w/w) at 20 °C present steady, oscillatory and extensional rheologies very similar to those of blood under physiological conditions (37 °C and ∼41% hematocrit), making them a good candidate whole blood analogue. Also, flow studies were performed in microchannels with contraction to study the cell-free layer (CFL) formation and particle deformation, achieving good qualitative results. Using the procedure developed, it is possible to obtain blood analogue fluids with a shelf life of at least 6 months.