Monitoring of fluid motion in a micromixer by dynamic NMR microscopy.
The velocity distribution of liquid flowing in a commercial micromixer has been determined directly by using pulsed-field gradient NMR. Velocity maps with a spatial resolution of 29 microm x 43 microm were obtained by combining standard imaging gradient units with a homebuilt rectangular surface coil matching the mixer geometry. The technique provides access to mixers and reactors of arbitrary shape regardless of optical transparency. Local heterogeneities in the signal intensity and the velocity pattern were found and serve to investigate the quality and functionality of a micromixer, revealing clogging and inhomogeneous flow distributions.
Ahola
Susanna
S
NMR Research Group, Department of Physical Sciences, 90014 University of Oulu, P.O. Box 3000, Finland. suahola@sun3.oulu.fi
Casanova
Federico
F
Perlo
Juan
J
Münnemann
Kerstin
K
Blümich
Bernhard
B
Stapf
Siegfried
S
D004867:Equipment Design; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000295:instrumentation*; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D008853:Microscopy / Q000295:instrumentation; D009038:Motion; D012996:Solutions / Q000737:chemistry
D012996:Solutions