Residue-free acoustofluidic manipulation of microparticles via removal of microchannel anechoic corner

Surface acoustic wave (SAW)-based acoustofluidics has shown significant promise to manipulate micro/nanoscale objects for biomedical applications, e.g. cell separation, enrichment, and sorting. A majority of the acoustofluidic devices utilize microchannels with rectangular cross-section where the acoustic waves propagate in the direction perpendicular to the sample flow. A region with weak acoustic wave intensity, termed microchannel anechoic corner (MAC), is formed inside a rectangular microchannel of the acoustofluidic devices where the ultrasonic waves refract into the fluid at the Rayleigh angle with respect to the normal to the substrate. Due to the absence of a strong acoustic field within the MAC, the microparticles flowing adjacent to the microchannel wall remain unaffected by a direct SAW-induced acoustic radiation force (ARF). Moreover, an acoustic streaming flow (ASF) vortex produced within the MAC pulls the particles further into the corner and away from the direct ARF influence. Therefore, a residue of particles continues to flow past the SAWs without intended deflection, causing a decrease in microparticle manipulation efficiency. In this work, we introduce a cross-type acoustofluidic device composed of a half-circular microchannel, fabricated through a thermal reflow of a positive photoresist mold, to overcome the limitations associated with rectangular microchannels, prone to the MAC formation. We investigated the effects of different microchannel cross-sectional shapes with varying contact angles on the microparticle deflection in a continuous flow and found three distinct regimes of particle deflection. By systematically removing the MAC out of the microchannel cross-section, we achieved residue-free acoustofluidic microparticle manipulation via SAW-induced ARF inside a half-circular microchannel. The proposed method was applied to efficient fluorescent coating of the microparticles in a size-selective manner without any residue particles left undeflected in the MAC.     

Degeneration of flow pattern in acousto-elastic flow through sharp-edge microchannels

Acoustic streaming (AS) is the steady time-averaged flow generated by acoustic field, which has been widely used in enhancing mixing and particle manipulation. Current researches on acoustic streaming mainly focus on Newtonian fluids, while many biological and chemical solutions exhibit non-Newtonian properties. The acoustic streaming in viscoelastic fluids has been studied experimentally for the first time in this paper. We found that the addition of polyethylene oxide (PEO) polymer to the Newtonian fluid significantly altered the flow characteristics in the microchannel. The resulting acousto-elastic flow showed two modes: positive mode and negative mode. Specifically, the viscoelastic fluids under acousto-elastic flow exhibit mixing hysteresis features at low flow rates, and degeneration of flow pattern at high flow rates. Through quantitative analysis, the degeneration of flow pattern is further summarized as time fluctuation and spatial disturbance range reduction. The positive mode in acousto-elastic flow can be used for the mixing enhancement of viscoelastic fluids in the micromixer, while the negative mode provides a potential method for particle/cell manipulation in viscoelastic body fluids such as saliva by suppressing unstable flow.     

Weak-focused acoustic vortex generated by a focused ring array of planar transducers and its application in large-scale rotational object manipulation

Contactless manipulation of multi-scale objects using the acoustic vortex(AV) tweezers offers tremendous perspectives in biomedical applications.However,it is still hindered by the weak acoustic radiation force(ARF) and torque(ART)around the vortex center.By introducing the elevation angle to the planar transducers of an N-element ring array,the weakfocused acoustic vortex(WFAV) composed of a main-AV and N paraxial-AVs is constructed to conduct a large-scale object manipulation.Different from the traditional focused AV(FAV) generated by a ring array of concave spherical transducers,a much larger focal region of the WFAV is generated by the main lobes of the planar transducers with the size inversely associated with the elevation angle.With the pressure simulation of the acoustic field,the capability of the rotational object driving in the focal plane for the WFAV is analyzed using the ARF and the ART exerted on an elastic ball based on acoustic scattering.With the experimental system built in water,the generation of the WFAV is verified by the scanning measurements of the acoustic field and the capability of object manipulation is also analyzed by the rotational trapping of floating particles in the focal plane.The favorable results demonstrate the feasibility of large-scale rotational manipulation of objects with a strengthened ART and a reduced acousto-thermal damage to biological tissues,showing a promising prospect for potential applications in clinical practice.     

Controlling acoustic streaming in an ultrasonic heptagonal tweezers with application to cell manipulation

Acoustic radiation force has been demonstrated as a method for manipulating micron-scale particles, but is frequently affected by unwanted streaming. In this paper the streaming in a multi-transducer quasi-standing wave acoustic particle manipulation device is assessed, and found to be dominated by a form of Eckart streaming. The experimentally observed streaming takes the form of two main vortices that have their highest velocity in the region where the standing wave is established. A finite element model is developed that agrees well with experimental results, and shows that the Reynolds stresses that give rise to the fluid motion are strongest in the high velocity region. A technical solution to reduce the streaming is explored that entails the introduction of a biocompatible agar gel layer at the bottom of the chamber so as to reduce the fluid depth and volume. By this means, we reduce the region of fluid that experiences the Reynolds stresses; the viscous drag per unit volume of fluid is also increased. Particle Image Velocimetry data is used to observe the streaming as a function of agar-modified cavity depth. It was found that, in an optimised structure, Eckart streaming could be reduced to negligible levels so that we could make a sonotweezers device with a large working area of up to 13 mm × 13 mm.     

Streaming potential analysis on the hydrodynamic transport of pressure-driven flow through a rotational microchannel

In this study, the streaming potential and electrokinetic energy conversion efficiency are discussed under the low zeta potential approximation through a microparallel channel with consideration of rotational effect. By solving Poisson-Boltzmann equation and modified Navier–Stokes equation, the analytical expressions of the streaming potential and electrokinetic energy conversion efficiency in the electrolyte solution are obtained. Combining with the numerical calculation, the influences of the dimensionless electrokinetic width K and the rotational angular velocity ω on streaming potential and the electrokinetic energy conversion efficiency are discussed. The results show that the streaming potential fields decrease both in mainstream and secondary directions with the electrokinetic width K, it decreases with the non-dimensional rotational angular velocity in the mainstream direction and it shows a first increasing then decreasing trend in the secondary flow direction. In addition, the influences of related non-dimensional parameters, including electrokinetic width, wall electric potential and rotational angular velocity, on the electrokinetic energy conversion efficiency are also discussed in detail. The rotating effect can enhance conversion efficiency comparing to the case of no rotation. The increase of wall electric potential gives rise to an augment in electrokinetic energy conversion efficiency. These theoretical results make sense to the energy harvesting in the rotating microfluidic systems.     

Precise micro-particle and bubble manipulation by tunable ultrasonic bottle beams

This paper reports a method to generate tunable bottle beams using an ultrasonic lens, by which the bottle position can be precisely adjusted with the change of the acoustic frequency. Therefore, the position of a single particle or bubble in liquid can be manipulated without using phased array which is costly and huge with complex circuits. Furthermore, we introduced this method to multiple bubble manipulation using acoustic holography. The bottle properties against frequency are theoretically and experimentally analyzed. It is shown that the bottle position depends almost linearly on the operating frequency, which provides a basis for the precise manipulation of bubbles and particles. In addition, the relationship between the acoustic radiation force and the drag force under different incident acoustic pressures is considered, establishing a limit on the moving velocity of the trapped particles. The ultrasonic field observation is further demonstrated by Schlieren imaging system. The proposed method has potential biomedical applications, such as more flexible cell manipulation and targeted drug delivery in vivo, as well as potential applications in the study of chemical reactions between micro objects.     

Manipulation of acoustic wavefront by transmissive metasurface based on pentamode metamaterials

An underwater acoustic metasurface with sub-wavelength thickness is designed for acoustic wavefront manipulation.In this paper, a pentamode lattice and a frequency-independent generalized acoustic Snell's law are introduced to overcome the limitations of narrow bandwidth and low transmittance. The bulk modulus and effective density of each unit cell can be tuned simultaneously, which are modulated to guarantee the achievement of refractive index profile and high transmission. Here, we actualize anomalous refraction, generation of non-diffracting Bessel beam, sub-wavelength flat focusing,and surface wave conversion by constructing inhomogeneous acoustic metasurface. This design approach has potential applications in medical ultrasound imaging and underwater acoustic communications.     

Controlling acoustic orbital angular momentum with artificial structures: From physics to application

Acoustic orbital angular momentum (OAM) associated with helicoidal wavefront recently attracts rapidly-growing attentions, offering a new degree of freedom for acoustic manipulation. Due to the unique dynamical behavior and inherent mode orthogonality of acoustic OAM, its harnessing is of fundamental interests for wave physics, with great potential in a plethora of applications. The recent advance in materials physics further boosts efforts into controlling OAM-carrying acoustic vortices, especially acoustic metasurfaces with planar profile and subwavelength thickness. Thanks to their unconventional acoustic properties beyond attainable in the nature, acoustic artificial structures provide a powerful platform for new research paradigm for efficient generation and diverse manipulation of OAM in ways not possible before, enabling novel applications in diverse scenarios ranging from underwater communication to object manipulation. In this article, we present a comprehensive view of this emerging field by delineating the fundamental physics of OAM-metasurface interaction and recent advances in the generation, manipulation, and application of acoustic OAM based on artificial structures, followed by an outlook for promising future directions and potential practical applications.     

Hypersonic‐Induced 3D Hydrodynamic Tweezers for Versatile Manipulations of Micro/Nanoscale Objects

Developing microrobots for precisely manipulating micro/nanoscale objects has triggered tremendous research interest for various applications in biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering. Here, a novel hypersonic‐induced hydrodynamic tweezers (HSHTs), which use gigahertz nano‐electromechanical resonator to create localized 3D vortex streaming array for the capture and manipulation of micro‐ and nanoparticles in three orientations: transportation in a plane and self‐rotation in place, are presented. 3D vortex streaming can effectively pick up particles from the flow, whereas the high‐speed rotating vortices are used to drive self‐rotation simultaneously. By tuning flow rate, the captured particles can be delivered, queued, and selectively sorted through the 3D HSHTs. Through numerical simulations and theoretical analysis, the generation of the 3D vortex and the mechanism of the particles manipulation by ultrahigh frequency acoustic wave are demonstrated. Benefitting from the advantages of the acoustic and hydrodynamic method, the developed HSHTs work in a precise, noninvasive, label‐free, and contact‐free manner, enabling wide applications in micro/nanoscale manipulations and biomedical research.     

Ultrasonic surface acoustic wave-assisted separation of microscale droplets with varying acoustic impedance

In droplet-based microfluidic platforms, precise separation of microscale droplets of different chemical composition is increasingly necessary for high-throughput combinatorial chemistry in drug discovery and screening assays. A variety of droplet sorting methods have been proposed, in which droplets of the same kind are translocated. However, there has been relatively less effort in developing techniques to separate the uniform-sized droplets of different chemical composition. Most of the previous droplet sorting or separation techniques either rely on the droplet size for the separation marker or adopt on-demand application of a force field for the droplet sorting or separation. The existing droplet microfluidic separation techniques based on the in-droplet chemical composition are still in infancy because of the technical difficulties. In this study, we propose an acoustofluidic method to simultaneously separate microscale droplets of the same volume and dissimilar acoustic impedance using ultrasonic surface acoustic wave (SAW)-induced acoustic radiation force (ARF). For extensive investigation on the SAW-induced ARF acting on both cylindrical and spherical droplets, we first performed a set of the droplet sorting experiments under varying conditions of acoustic impedance of the dispersed phase fluid, droplet velocity, and wave amplitude. Moreover, for elucidation of the underlying physics, a new dimensionless number AR_D was introduced, which was defined as the ratio of the ARF to the drag force acting on the droplets. The experimental results were comparatively analyzed by using a ray acoustics approach and found to be in good agreement with the theoretical estimation. Based on the findings, we successfully demonstrated the simultaneous separation of uniform-sized droplets of the different acoustic impedance under continuous application of the acoustic field in a label-free and detection-free manner. Insomuch as on-chip, precise separation of multiple kinds of droplets is critical in many droplet microfluidic applications, the proposed acoustofluidic approach will provide new prospects for microscale droplet separation.     

Gauss声束对离轴椭圆柱的声辐射力矩

利用部分波展开法求解得到了Gauss声束入射下刚性和非刚性椭圆柱的声散射系数,推导了一般情况下的声辐射力矩表达式.在此基础上,通过一系列数值仿真详细分析了离轴距离、入射角度和束腰半径对声辐射力矩的影响.结果表明:正向与负向声辐射力矩均可以在一定条件下存在;低频情况下刚性椭圆柱比非刚性椭圆柱更容易产生较强的声辐射力矩;特定频率的入射声场可以激发出非刚性椭圆柱不同阶的共振散射模式,因而非刚性椭圆柱的声辐射力矩峰值与频率的关系更密切;增加束腰半径有利于扩大散射截面,进而增加椭圆柱的声辐射力矩.该研究结果预期可以为利用声辐射力矩实现粒子的可控旋转和流体黏度的反演提供一定的理论指导.     

Acoustic treaming visualization in elastic spherical cavities

Flow visualizations are presented for acoustic streaming occurring inside spherical elastic cavities oscillating in an acoustic field. Streaming flows are visualized using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and results are observed for a range of values of a dimensionless frequency parameter,M=120–306. Over the frequency range investigated, streaming flow fields remain steady at a given value ofM. The magnitude of the flows circulating inside the cavity remains small (<1 mm/s) and follows a non-linear dependency with respect to the acoustic power of the sound wave. The present boundary-driven cavity flows may enhance particle fluid transport mechanisms, leading ultimately to potential fluid mixing applications.     

Analytic model of acoustic streaming in thermoacoustic waveguides with slowly varying cross-section

An analytic model of acoustic streaming generated in two-dimensional thermoa-coustic waveguides with slowly varying cross-section was developed for more general applications. The analytical solutions of acoustic streaming characteristics in the closed straight tube and the annular tube are given based on the model.The solution for the closed straight tube can be applied to the case with any transverse scale.The solution for the annular tube is obtained under the assumption that the width of the varying cross-section part is much larger than the viscous and thermal penetration depths.The effects of cross-section variation,time-averaged temperature distribution and components of sound field are reflected in the analytic solutions. The magnitude and distribution of acoustic streaming velocity vary with the characteristic scale of the waveguides.The analytic model of acoustic streaming can be applied in research under thermoacoustic and other physical backgrounds.     

渐变截面热声波导管内的声流解析模型

建立了二维渐变截面热声波导管内的声流模型,分别考虑了封闭直管和环形回路两种不同结构,获得了更为普适的解析结果。封闭直管结构的声流结果可应用于任意宽度的波导管,环路结构的结果考虑了渐变截面管段宽度远大于热、黏穿透深度的情形。研究结果表明,渐变截面热声波导管内的声流主要受声场结构、截面变化及轴向时均温度分布的影响,在其它参量不变时声流量值及分布随波导管特征尺度的不同而变化。该解析模型可应用于热声及其它物理背景下的声流分析。      

Investigation on influencing factors of acoustic streaming in thermoacoustic waveguides with slowly varying cross-section

The influencing factors of acoustic streaming in thermoacoustic waveguides with slowly varying cross-section are analyzed based on theoretical analysis and numerical simulation. The distribution curves of acoustic streaming velocity in waveguides with different characteristic scales are presented in several specific cases.The results show that appropriate forms of varying cross-section can strengthen or weaken acoustic streaming for specific acoustic fields and the thermophysical parameters have no effect on this part.In addition,the influence of time-average temperature distribution on acoustic streaming is substantial in tubes with a width of the order of the thermal penetration depth.Without time-average temperature distribution,the effect of heat conduction on acoustic streaming is great in tubes whose width is an order of about 10 to 20 times the viscous penetration depth.     

Stability analysis of the rotor of ultrasonic motor driving fluid directly

The stability of the rotor of ultrasonic motor driving fluid directly is a key to its applications and control. This paper introduced the acoustic streaming and acoustic viscous stress near the boundary layer. Following this, the effect of acoustic viscous force on the stability of the rotor of ultrasonic motor driving fluid directly was presented in detail. The result showed that this system can be equivalent to a mass-spring and the spring constant can be used to weigh the stability of the rotor. By this model and relevant experiments, factors that affect the stability of the rotor such as the driving frequency, the rotor's weight and radius, the saturated acoustic streaming velocity, the mode number of stator vibration, the fluid's height and type are investigated and useful guidelines for design and application are obtained.     

渐变截面热声波导管内的声流影响因素分析

通过理论分析和数值仿真,对渐变截面热声波导管内声流各影响因素进行了具体的分析,并给出了不同情形下波导管内的声流速度分布特性曲线。研究表明,热物理参数对渐变截面导致的声流变化无影响,针对具体的声场设计合适的截面变化形式可以使得管内声流在整体上得到一定程度的抑制或加强。此外,当波导管截面尺度与热穿透深度同数量级时,轴向时均温度分布对声流的影响十分显著。当不存在非零时均温度梯度时,热传导效应对声流的影响在管截面尺度为黏性穿透深度约10至20倍量级时最大。      

Manipulation with sound and vibration: A review on the micromanipulation system based on sub-MHz acoustic waves

Manipulation of micro-objects have been playing an essential role in biochemical analysis or clinical diagnostics. Among the diverse technologies for micromanipulation, acoustic methods show the advantages of good biocompatibility, wide tunability, a label-free and contactless manner. Thus, acoustic micromanipulations have been widely exploited in micro-analysis systems. In this article, we reviewed the acoustic micromanipulation systems that were actuated by sub-MHz acoustic waves. In contrast to the high-frequency range, the acoustic microsystems operating at sub-MHz acoustic frequency are more accessible, whose acoustic sources are at low cost and even available from daily acoustic devices (e.g. buzzers, speakers, piezoelectric plates). The broad availability, with the addition of the advantages of acoustic micromanipulation, make sub-MHz microsystems promising for a variety of biomedical applications. Here, we review recent progresses in sub-MHz acoustic micromanipulation technologies, focusing on their applications in biomedical fields. These technologies are based on the basic acoustic phenomenon, such as cavitation, acoustic radiation force, and acoustic streaming. And categorized by their applications, we introduce these systems for mixing, pumping and droplet generation, separation and enrichment, patterning, rotation, propulsion and actuation. The diverse applications of these systems hold great promise for a wide range of enhancements in biomedicines and attract increasing interest for further investigation.     

Strategies for single particle manipulation using acoustic and flow fields

Acoustic radiation forces have often been used for the manipulation of large amounts of micrometer sized suspended particles. The nature of acoustic standing wave fields is such that they are present throughout the whole fluidic volume; this means they are well suited to such operations, with all suspended particles reacting at the same time upon exposure. Here, this simultaneous positioning capability is exploited to pre-align particles along the centerline of channels, so that they can successively be removed by means of an external tool for further analysis. This permits a certain degree of automation in single particle manipulation processes to be achieved as initial identification of particles’ location is no longer necessary, rather predetermined. Two research fields in which applications are found have been identified. First, the manipulation of copolymer beads and cells using a microgripper is presented. Then, sample preparation for crystallographic analysis by positioning crystals into a loop using acoustic manipulation and a laminar flow will be presented.