PoroFluidics: deterministic fluid control in porous microfluidics.

Area of Science:

• Engineering
• Physics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Microfluidic devices with porous structures offer unique fluid manipulation capabilities.
• Challenges exist in understanding design principles for consistent flow patterns in these devices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a design framework for microfluidic devices with porous architectures (poroFluidics).
• To achieve deterministic control of multi-phase fluid transport processes.

Main Methods:

• Quantitative and mechanistic analyses of gas-liquid-solid interface phenomena.
• Incorporation of fluid properties (viscosity, interfacial tension, wettability) and solid properties (manufacture resolution).
• Experimental validation and numerical simulations.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated consistent flow in porous media by integrating fluid and solid properties.
• Achieved desired spatial and temporal fluid invasion sequences.
• Identified control of preferential flow pathways via solid geometry, flow conditions, or fluid/solid properties.

Conclusions:

• The developed design framework enables precise, multifunctional, and dynamic control of multi-phase transport in engineered porous media.
• Facilitates wider applications of microfluidic devices with porous architectures.