Developments and Applications of Microfluidic Pumps and Valves

Abstract

Microfluidic technology is used a lot in modern engineering. Microfluidic pumps and valves are key topics of microfluidic research today. Microfluidic pumps and valves have long life of equipment with low power waste. They can transport liquids like water and oil. Microfluidic pumps and valves are widely used in household appliances, cooling systems and medical devices. However, there is still a research gap on the improvement of the performance of the microfluidic pumps and valves. Therefore, this paper summarizes the recent developments and applications of the design and optimization techniques for micropumps and microvalves. The basic principle of topology optimization technique for micro-pumps and valves and its applications are detailed. Research findings are summarized. Suggestions are put forward to provide useful guidelines for future research. Overall, this paper can be served as a useful reference for those who would like to know the optimization design method of microfluidic pumps and valves.