Effect of Fin-Shaped Electrodes on Flow Mixing and Pressure Drop in an Electroosmotic Micromixer

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Shahrekord University, Shahrekord, I.R. IRAN

2 Department of Electrical Engineering, École de Technologie Supérieure (ÉTS), CANADA

Abstract

Production of a homogeneous solution is of great interest for Lab-on-a-Chip (LOC) applications. Since the fluid flow in microchannels is laminar, the LOC devices have low mixing efficiency in passive mixers. The present study proposes a novel electroosmotic micromixer in which the electrodes have a fin-shaped structure in the mixing chamber. In other words, the combined effect of obstacle and electro-osmosis is evaluated. The effect of various parameters such as electrode angle, electrode height, inlet velocity, alternating current, and frequency on mixing index and pressure drop is investigated. Vortices are formed around the electrodes due to the applied electric field and their fin-shaped structure. It is revealed that the mixing index is an increasing function of applied voltage. The results demonstrate that there is an optimal value for the parameters, including frequency, electrode height, inlet velocity, and electrode angle. An increase in the mixing efficiency is accompanied by an enhancement in the pressure drop. It is revealed that the maximum efficiency is achieved when the electrode height is 5 μm and the electrode angle is 60°. The coefficient of performance of the proposed micromixer is more than that of the reference mixer when the electrode height is 2.5 μm and the electrode angle is 90°.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

[1] Bahrami D., Nadooshan A. A., Bayareh M., Numerical Study on The Effect of Planar Normal and Halbach Magnet Arrays on Micromixing, International Journal of Chemical Reactor Engineering, 18, (2020).
[2] Bayareh M., Ghasemi B., Nazemi Ashani M., Acoustofluidic Separation of Microparticles: A Numerical Study, Iranian Journal of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering (IJCCE),41(9): 2873-2886 (2021).
[3] Bayareh M., Ashani M. N., Usefian A., Active and Passive Micromixers: A Comprehensive Review, Chemical Engineering and Processing-Process Intensification, 147: 107771 (2020).
[4] Lee C.-Y., Fu L.-M., Recent Advances and Applications of Micromixers, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 259: 677-702 (2018).
[5] Hadjigeorgiou A. G., Boudouvis A. G., Kokkoris G., Thorough Computational Analysis of the Staggered Herringbone Micromixer Reveals Transport Mechanisms and Enables Mixing Efficiency-Based Improved Design, Chemical Engineering Journal, 414: 128775 (2021).
[6] Chen X., Li T., Zeng H., Hu Z., Fu B.,  Numerical and Experimental Investigation on Micromixers with Serpentine Microchannels, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 98: 131-140 (2016).
[7] Babaie Z., Bahrami D., Bayareh M., Investigation of a Novel Serpentine Micromixer Based on Dean Flow and Separation Vortices, Meccanica, 57: 73-86 (2022).
[8] Chen X., Li T., A Novel Passive Micromixer Designed by Applying an Optimization Algorithm to the Zigzag Microchannel, Chemical Engineering Journal, 313: 1406-1414 (2017).
[9] Bahrami D., Bayareh M., Impacts of Channel Wall Twisting on the Mixing Enhancement of a Novel Spiral Micromixer, Chemical Papers, 1-12 (2021).
[10] Bahrami D., Bayareh M., Experimental and Numerical Investigation of a Novel Spiral Micromixer with Sinusoidal Channel Walls, Chemical Engineering & Technology, 45: 100-109 (2022).
[11] Hejazian M., Nguyen N.-T., A Rapid Magnetofluidic Micromixer Using Diluted Ferrofluid, Micromachines, 8: 37 (2017).
[12] Lim E., Lee L., Yeo L. Y., Hung Y. M., Tan M. K., Acoustically Driven Micromixing: Effect of Transducer Geometry, IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and Frequency Control, 66: 1387-1394 (2019).
[13] Lv H., Chen X., New Insights into the Mechanism of Fluid Mixing in the Micromixer Based on Alternating Current Electric Heating with Film Heaters, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 181: 121902 (2021).
[14] Ding H., Zhong X., Liu B., Shi L., Zhou T., Zhu Y., Mixing Mechanism of a Straight Channel Micromixer Based on Light-Actuated Oscillating Electroosmosis in Low-Frequency Sinusoidal AC Electric Field, Microfluidics and Nanofluidics, 25:
1-15 (2021).
[15] Afzal A., Kim K.-Y., “Analysis and Design Optimization of Micromixers”, Springer, pp. 11-34 (2021).
[16] Rashidi S., Bafekr H., Valipour M.S., Esfahani J.A., A Review on the Application, Simulation, and Experiment of the Electrokinetic Mixers, Chemical Engineering and Processing-Process Intensification, 126: 108-122 (2018).
[17] Nayak A., Analysis of Mixing for Electroosmotic Flow in Micro/Nano Channels with Heterogeneous Surface Potential, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 75: 135-144 (2014).
[18] Banerjee A., Nayak A., Haque A., Weigand B., Induced Mixing Electrokinetics in a Charged Corrugated Nano-Channel: Towards a Controlled Ionic Transport, Microfluidics and Nanofluidics, 22:  1-21 (2018).
[19] Nayak A., Haque A., Weigand B., Wereley S., Thermokinetic Transport of Dilatant/Pseudoplastic Fluids in a Hydrophobic Patterned Micro-Slit, Physics of Fluids, 32: 072002 (2020).
[20] Haque A., Nayak A., Bhattacharyya S., Numerical Study on Ion Transport and Electro-Convective Mixing of Power-Law Fluid in a Heterogeneous Micro-Constrained Channel, Physics of Fluids, 33: 122014 (2021).
[21] Khakpour A., Ramiar A., Numerical Investigation of the Effect of Electrode Arrangement and Geometry on Electrothermal Fluid Flow Pumping and Mixing in Microchannel, Chemical Engineering and Processing-Process Intensification, 150: 107864 (2020).
[22] Seo H.-S., Han B., Kim Y.-J., Numerical Study on the Mixing Performance of a Ring-Type Electroosmotic Micromixer with Different Obstacle Configurations, Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, 12: 4523-4530 (2012).
[23] Usefian A., Bayareh M., Shateri A., Taheri N., Numerical Study of Electro-Osmotic Micro-Mixing of Newtonian and Non-Newtonian Fluids, Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering, 41: 1-10 (2019).
[24] Basati Y., Mohammadipour O. R., Niazmand H., Numerical Investigation and Simultaneous Optimization of Geometry and Zeta-Potential in Electroosmotic Mixing Flows, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 133: 786-799 (2019).
[25] Zhang K., Ren Y., Hou L., Feng X., Chen X., Jiang H., An Efficient Micromixer Actuated by Induced-Charge Electroosmosis Using Asymmetrical Floating Electrodes, Microfluidics and Nanofluidics, 22: 1-11 (2018).
[26] Alipanah M., Ramiar A., High Efficiency Micromixing Technique Using Periodic Induced Charge Electroosmotic Flow: A Numerical Study, Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, 524: 53-65 (2017).
[27] Usefian A., Bayareh M., Numerical and Experimental Study on Mixing Performance of a Novel Electro-Osmotic Micro-Mixer, Meccanica, 54: 1149-1162 (2019).
[28] Hadigol M., Nosrati R., Nourbakhsh A., Raisee M., Numerical Study of Electroosmotic Micromixing of Non-Newtonian Fluids, Journal of Non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics, 166: 965-971 (2011).
[29] Jalili H., Raad M., Fallah D. A., Numerical Study on the Mixing Quality of an Electroosmotic Micromixer under Periodic Potential, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part C: Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science, 234: 2113-2125 (2020).
[30] Cheng Y., Jiang Y., Wang W., Numerical Simulation for Electro-Osmotic Mixing under Three Types of Periodic Potentials in a T-Shaped Micro-Mixer, Chemical Engineering and Processing-Process Intensification, 127: 93-102 (2018).
[31] Zhou T., Wang H., Shi L., Liu Z., Joo S.W., An Enhanced Electroosmotic Micromixer with an Efficient Asymmetric Lateral Structure, Micromachines, 7: 218 (2016).
[32] Shamloo A., Mirzakhanloo M., Dabirzadeh M.R., Numerical Simulation for Efficient Mixing of Newtonian and Non-Newtonian Fluids in an Electro-Osmotic Micro-Mixer, Chemical Engineering and Processing-Process Intensification, 107: 11-20 (2016).
[33] Chen X., Wu Z., Design and Numerical Simulation of a Novel Microfluidic Electroosmotic Micromixer with Three Electrode Pairs, Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology, 94: 1991-1997 (2019).
[34] Basati Y., Mohammadipour O.R., Niazmand H., Design and Analysis of an Electroosmotic Micro-Reactor and its Application on Controlling a Chemical Reaction, Chemical Engineering and Processing-Process Intensification, 164: 108381 (2021).
[35] Bahrami D., Nadooshan A. A., Bayareh M., Effect of Non-Uniform Magnetic Field on Mixing Index of a Sinusoidal Micromixer, Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering, (2022).
[36] Bayareh M., Artificial Diffusion in the Simulation of Micromixers: A Review, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part C: Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science, 253: 5288-5296 (2021).
Iranian Journal of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering
Volume 42, Issue 1 - Serial Number 123
January 2023
Pages 208-221

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics