Multicurvature viscous streaming: Flow topology and particle manipulation

Area of Science:

• Fluid dynamics
• Microfluidics
• Applied physics

Background:

• Viscous streaming generates steady flows from oscillating liquids around microfeatures.
• It enables effective fluid and particle manipulation in microfluidics.
• Current limitations include a narrow range of achievable flow topologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore novel microfeature designs for expanding viscous streaming capabilities.
• To demonstrate the generation of diverse flow repertoires beyond classical designs.
• To showcase applications in particle manipulation, filtering, and separation.

Main Methods:

• Utilized computational methods to design multicurvature microfeatures.
• Conducted experimental investigations of viscous streaming with these new designs.
• Developed compact, tunable devices for particle handling.

Main Results:

• Multicurvature microfeatures produced rich and diverse viscous streaming flow repertoires.
• Demonstrated enhanced manipulation, filtering, and separation of synthetic and biological particles.
• Achieved compact, robust, and tunable device performance.

Conclusions:

• Moving beyond uniform curvature unlocks a wider scope of viscous streaming applications.
• The mixed computational/experimental approach offers significant potential in manufacturing, environmental, and health sectors.
• Applications range from particle self-assembly to microplastics removal.