Microfluidic T-Form Mixer Utilizing Pressure Disturbances

A simple solution to mixing problems in micro fluidic systems was presented in this paper. A T-form microfluidic mixer was designed and tested utilizing pressure disturbances. The performance of the mixer was studied through both numerical simulation and experimentation. Based on results of numerical simulation, more than 75% mixing can be finished within a mixing distance of less than 1.5mm from the T-junction for flow with Reynolds number less than 0.24. For Reynolds number higher than 0.24, about 90% mixing can be finished in less than 1.5mm. The numerical results were validated by mixing two aqueous solutions under the microscope and the flow field was visualized using two different dyes. There was very good agreement between the numerical simulation results and experimental results in flow patterns.