Viscosimeter on a microfluidic chip.
In this work, a viscosimeter implemented on a microfluidic chip is presented. The physical principle of this system is to use laminar parallel flows in a microfluidic channel. The fluid to be studied flows side by side with a reference fluid of known viscosity. By using optical microscopy, the shape of the interface between both fluids can be determined. Knowing the flow rates of the two liquids and the geometrical features of the channel, the mean shear rate sustained by the fluid and its viscosity can thus be computed. Accurate and precise measurements of the viscosity as a function of the shear rate can be made using less than 300 microL of fluid. Several complex fluids are tested with viscosities ranging from 10(-)(3) to 70 Pa.s.
Guillot
Pierre
P
Rhodia Laboratoire du Futur, Unité Mixte Rhodia-CNRS, Université Bordeaux I, 178 Avenue du Docteur Schweitzer, 33608 Pessac, France. pierre.guillot-exterieur@eu.rhodia.com
Panizza
Pascal
P
Salmon
Jean-Baptiste
JB
Joanicot
Mathieu
M
Colin
Annie
A
Bruneau
Charles-Henri
CH
Colin
Thierry
T