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. 2016 Feb 26;7(3):37.
doi: 10.3390/mi7030037.

Mathematical Modelling and Simulation Research of Thermal Engraving Technology Based on PMMA Material

Xiaowei Han  1 , Xiaowei Liu  2 , Li Tian  3
Affiliations

Mathematical Modelling and Simulation Research of Thermal Engraving Technology Based on PMMA Material

Xiaowei Han et al. Micromachines (Basel). .

Abstract

We proposed a thermal engraving technology based on heat transfer theory and polymer rheology in microfluidic field. Then, we established a 3D model of the thermal engraving process based on polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) material. We could employ the model to analyze the influence of temperature and speed on microchannel processing through the finite element simulation. Thus, we gained the optimal processing parameters. The orthogonal experiments were carried out within the parameter ranges obtained by the simulation results. Finally, we fabricated the smooth microchannel, the average roughness of which was 0.3 μm, by using the optimal parameters. Furthermore, we examined the surface morphology and wettability. Our work provides a convenient technological support for a fast, low-cost, and large-scale manufacturing method of microfluidic chips.

Keywords: MEMS; microchannel; microfluidic chip.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The block diagram of thermal engraving system design.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The schematic of thermal engraving process.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The geometric model and the photo of a rectangular engraving micrograver: (a) The geometric model of a rectangular engraving micrograver; (b) The photo of a rectangular engraving micrograver.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The surface temperature distribution of the thermal engraving micrograver.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The cross sectional view of temperature distribution of the thermal engraving micrograver.
Figure 6
Figure 6
The cross-sectional view of temperature distribution at different thermal engraving speed: (a) v = 1 mm/s; (b) v = 2 mm/s. (c) v = 3 mm/s; (d) v = 4 mm/s.
Figure 7
Figure 7
The cross-sectional view of temperature distribution when the thermal engraving speed is higher than the heat transfer rate.
Figure 8
Figure 8
The geometrical model a 100 μm width rectangular microchannel in the thermal engraving process.
Figure 9
Figure 9
The temperature of the polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) viscous flow: (a) The temperature distribution of the PMMA viscous flow; (b) The isothermal sectional view of PMMA viscous flow.
Figure 10
Figure 10
The flow field of the PMMA viscous flow.
Figure 11
Figure 11
The cross-sectional view of the pressure distribution of the PMMA viscous flow.
Figure 12
Figure 12
The pressure distribution of the PMMA viscous flow.
Figure 13
Figure 13
The relationship between temperature and pressure of viscous flow on the normal movement direction of micrograver.
Figure 14
Figure 14
The relationship between the speed and the pressure of viscous flow on the normal direction of micrograver.
Figure 15
Figure 15
The features of rectangular microchannel: (a) The cross-sectional image of rectangular microchannel; (b) The atomic force microscope (AFM) image of microchannel.
Figure 16
Figure 16
The 30 μm width rectangular microchannel.
Figure 17
Figure 17
The wettability of microchannels: (a) Hydrophilic microchannel; (b) Hydrophobic microchannel.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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