Effects of manifold geometries on flow distribution to parallel microchannels

Abstract

For efficient scale up of microchannel devices, uniform flow distribution to parallel microchannels is very important. In the present work, a dimensionless geometric parameter indicating the optimal manifold configuration is derived through a numerical parametric study and validated by micro particle image velocimetry. It is clearly shown that the flow uniformity is maximized when the dimensionless parameter is about 0.8. This study presents a simple and systematic design methodology for a uniform flow distribution to multiple microchannels operating in parallel.