Erythrocyte Separation Using Gravitational Field Flow Effect

This research aims to simulate a gravity flow fractionation—the process to fractionate erythrocytes through gravitational field using ANSYS simulation software. A particular microfluidic channel was designed as a separation device. The gravitational equilibrium conditions of the erythrocytes and gravitational field as the parameters were chosen, then deriving the erythrocytes’ path through numerical simulations. After the actual analog measurements, there is no big difference between the flow velocity and the pressure under +/−10% atmosphere condition. According to the simulation results, the particle with the size 8 μm (similar to the erythrocyte size) can be separated to the outside channel and discharged from the collecting area, other particles with the size 9 μm will stay in the fluid motion and can be collected in the final collection area for preservation. Through the analog analysis by using the software-ANSYS-Fluent, the complete flowing path of the particles and the feasibility of the Gravity-Flow Fractionation can be directly proven.