Abstract
Imitating the structure of the venous valve and its characteristics of passive opening and closing with changes in heart pressure, a piezoelectric pump with flexible valves (PPFV) was designed. Firstly, the structure and the working principle of the PPFV were introduced. Then, the flexible valve, the main functional component of the pump, was analyzed theoretically. Finally, an experimental prototype was manufactured and its performance was tested. The research proves that the PPFV can achieve a smooth transition between valved and valveless by only changing the driving signal of the piezoelectric (PZT) vibrator. The results demonstrate that when the driving voltage is 100 V and the frequency is 25 Hz, the experimental flow rate of the PPFV is about 119.61 mL/min, and the output pressure is about 6.16 kPa. This kind of pump can realize the reciprocal conversion of a large flow rate, high output pressure, and a small flow rate, low output pressure under the electronic control signal. Therefore, it can be utilized for fluid transport and pressure transmission at both the macro-level and the micro-level, which belongs to the macro–micro combined component.
Highlights
As an actuator, the micro-pump plays an irreplaceable role in numerous fields, such as biomedicine, aerospace, and so forth [1,2,3,4]
The flexible valves were made of brass and their shape was produced by laser-cutting technology
The results show that the pump with flexible valves (PPFV) has a higher flow rate and higher output pressure when the frequency is about 25 Hz
Summary
The micro-pump plays an irreplaceable role in numerous fields, such as biomedicine, aerospace, and so forth [1,2,3,4]. A PZT pump with a movable valve is called a “valved PZT pump”, and a PZT pump with a no-moving-part valve is called a “valveless PZT pump” These two types of pumps have their advantages and disadvantages. The valve body of the pump imitates the structure of the venous valve and its characteristics of passive opening and closing with changes in heart pressure, which makes it set a valved state and valveless state in one. This kind of pump can realize the reciprocal conversion of the large flow rate, high pressure difference and the small flow rate, low pressure difference
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