Print your own membrane: direct rapid prototyping of polydimethylsiloxane.
Polydimethylsiloxane is a translucent and biologically inert silicone material used in sealants, biomedical implants and microscale lab-on-a-chip devices. Furthermore, in membrane technology, polydimethylsiloxane represents a material for separation barriers as it has high permeabilities for various gases. The facile handling of two component formulations with a silicone base material, a catalyst and a small molecular weight crosslinker makes it widely applicable for soft-lithographic replication of two-dimensional device geometries, such as microfluidic chips or micro-contact stamps. Here, we develop a new technique to directly print polydimethylsiloxane in a rapid prototyping device, circumventing the need for masks or sacrificial mold production. We create a three-dimensional polydimethylsiloxane membrane for gas-liquid-contacting based on a Schwarz-P triple-periodic minimal-surface, which is inaccessible with common machining techniques. Direct 3D-printing of polydimethylsiloxane enables rapid production of novel chip geometries for a manifold of lab-on-a-chip applications.
Chemical Process Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, Turmstraße 46, 52064 Aachen, Germany. manuscripts.cvt@avt.rwth-aachen.de.
Tim
T
Femmer
Alexander J C
AJ
Kuehne
Matthias
M
Wessling
D004396:Coloring Agents / Q000737:chemistry; D004129:Dimethylpolysiloxanes / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000528:radiation effects; D055119:Elastic Modulus; D004867:Equipment Design; D005663:Furans / Q000737:chemistry; D056656:Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; D008422:Materials Testing; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D010539:Permeability; D010721:Phosphinic Acids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000528:radiation effects; D055668:Photochemical Processes; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000528:radiation effects; D066330:Printing, Three-Dimensional; D012997:Solvents / Q000737:chemistry; D013053:Spectrophotometry; D013499:Surface Properties; D013997:Time Factors
D004396:Coloring Agents; D004129:Dimethylpolysiloxanes; D005663:Furans; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D010721:Phosphinic Acids; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents; D012997:Solvents; C018674:tetrahydrofuran