A process chain for integrating microfluidic interconnection elements by micro-overmoulding of thermoplastic elastomers

作者：Attia U M^*; Alcock J R

来源：Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, 2010, 20(5): 055017.

DOI：10.1088/0960-1317/20/5/055017

This paper presents a process chain for in-line integration of microfluidic interconnection elements by a variant of micro-injection moulding (mu IM). A SEBS-based thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) was moulded over polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) to produce a hybrid microfluidic structure with an aspect ratio of 2. The process chain implemented micro-milling for fabricating micro-structured tool inserts, and mu IM and micro-overmoulding was used for replication. A two-plate mould was used for moulding the substrate, whilst a three-plate mould with a replaceable insert was used for TPE overmoulding. The presented application was an interconnect system for a microfluidic device, which enabled direct fitting of standard tubes into microfluidic substrates. A leakage test showed that the interconnection was leak-proof within a range of flow rates between 0.32 and 0.62 ml min(-1).

• 出版日期2010-5