Influence of chamber dimensions on the performance of a conduction micropump

Abstract

An electrohydrodynamic (EHD) conduction micropump with symmetric planar electrodes is developed to investigate the effect of micropump chamber dimensions on static pressure and flow rate. The interdigitated electrodes are created on an FR-4 CCL (copper clad laminate) using photolithography. The micropump consists of an electrode plate, chamber plate, top and bottom end cover. A 2D numerical simulation study is conducted to provide details about the ion distribution and fluid flow behaviors within a local domain of micropumps with different chamber height. Experimental results show that, by increasing chamber height, the static pressure and flow rate rise with a big slope under a chamber height of 0.2 mm, and henceforth decrease dramatically. The variation trends of static pressure and flow rate with an increase in chamber height are determined by the combination of ion concentration distribution and fluidic circulation formed between the two electrodes. Additionally, the effect of the chamber width and length is experimentally analyzed for optimum pressure and output flow rate.