Flow Uniformity in a Microdevice

Rachel Freeman

The purpose of this project is to model the fluid flow and diffusive transport in a microfluidic device that used by Dr. Chee Ng and Professor Suzie Pun in the Department of Bioengineering and the University of Washington. This apparatus is designed to deliver nanoparticles through a semi-permeable membrane to embedded cells. The fluid travels past solid supports before it reaches the embedded cells, which plays an important role in the flow characteristics. The purpose of modeling the flow through this device was to determine the path the nanoparticles will follow and determine how the particles diffuse throughout this device.

Three geometries were analyzed in order to compare relative velocity profiles and concentration distributions. The relative shapes and concentration distributions are shown below:

The concentration flows across this device, with the concentration increasing over time. A graph of the increase in concentration over time is shown below.