title: A micromixer with consistent mixing performance for a wide range of flow rates.
abstract: A micromixer with consistent mixing performance for a wide range of flow rates is presented. The mixer makes use of internally moving elements, i.e. steel balls that are located in dedicated mixing chambers. Movement is induced by a rotating magnetic field. To get better insight in differences between active and passive mixing, we studied a mixer that can operate in both regimes. A mixing performance study for a range of flow rates along with pressure drop data is presented. The response of the moving elements in regard to the magnetic field is shown experimentally and shows the limitations of earlier modeling studies. Lastly, the estimated power input on the fluids was calculated and allows for a comparison with more well-known convective-type mixers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Goovaerts
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Van Assche
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sonck
authors.forename: Joeri
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Denayer
authors.forename: Gert
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Desmet
mesh_terms: D004867:Equipment Design; D060526:Magnetic Fields; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*
keywords: Active mixing; Magnetic; Mixing performance; Passive mixing; Power dissipation