Dynamics of Oppositely Charged Emulsion Droplets

Talk #29Junior Scientist, Postdoc and Student WorkshopsTwo droplets are typically expected to coalesce upon contact due to the minimization of surface energy. However, when droplets are placed under an electric field, the presence of electric stress can lead to even more intriguing dynamics. For example, in a significantly strong electric field, the droplets bounce away from each other upon contact instead of coalescing. In this work, we investigate the dynamics of two oppositely charged droplets. We characterize the dynamics of emulsion droplets by a state diagram using an electrocapillary number and relative separation number. A phenomenon of periodic contact and separation of two oppositely charged droplets, which we term periodic contact, is demonstrated and studied. Two qualitatively different types of periodic contact are identified: “fuse-and-split” and periodic non-coalescence. In regime of “fuse-and-split”, the droplets first coalesce into a jet that remains stable for tens of milliseconds; afterwards, it breaks up into droplets again. In regime of “periodic non-coalescence”, the droplets contact periodically without coalescence. We show this periodic contact occurs because of the interaction between electric stress and surface tension and only exists when the electric conductivity of droplets is relatively high. When droplets are not in contact, the electric stress deforms the droplets against the surface tension and leads to their approach. Upon contact, the electric stress is relieved and surface tension starts to dominate during the evolution of droplets’ interface. By analyzing the surface energy evolution, we show that “fuse-and-split” which enables fluid exchange between the droplets represents a way for droplets to reach a state of minimized surface energy. The periodic non-coalescence which prevents the fluid exchange represents an energy barrier to stop the droplets from approaching the minimized surface energy state. Also, droplets in the regime of “fuse-and-split” will eventually remain separated or transition to the periodic non-coalescence with the change of the droplet shape. Our work enriches the understanding of dynamics associated with charged emulsion droplets as well as other research problems which involve the interplay of electric stress and surface tension.published_or_final_versio

Fabrication of uniform multi-compartment particles using microfludic electrospray technology for cell co-culture studies

Footnote in article: Paper submitted as part of the 3rd European Conference on Microfluidics ... 2012In this work, we demonstrate a robust and reliable approach to fabricate multi-compartment particles for cell co-culture studies. By taking advantage of the laminar flow within our microfluidic nozzle, multiple parallel streams of liquids flow towards the nozzle without significant mixing. Afterwards, the multiple parallel streams merge into a single stream, which is sprayed into air, forming monodisperse droplets under an electric field with a high field strength. The resultant multi-compartment droplets are subsequently cross-linked in a calcium chloride solution to form calcium alginate micro-particles with multiple compartments. Each compartment of the particles can be used for encapsulating different types of cells or biological cell factors. These hydrogel particles with cross-linked alginate chains show similarity in the physical and mechanical environment as the extracellular matrix of biological cells. Thus, the multi-compartment particles provide a promising platform for cell studies and co-culture of different cells. In our study, cells are encapsulated in the multi-compartment particles and the viability of cells is quantified using a fluorescence microscope after the cells are stained for a live/dead assay. The high cell viability after encapsulation indicates the cytocompatibility and feasibility of our technique. Our multi-compartment particles have great potential as a platform for studying cell-cell interactions as well as interactions of cells with extracellular factors. © 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.published_or_final_versio

Three-dimensional printing-based electro-millifluidic devices for fabricating multi-compartment particles

In this work, we demonstrate the use of stereolithographic 3D printing to fabricate millifluidic devices, which are used to engineer particles with multiple compartments. As the 3D design is directly transferred to the actual prototype, this method accommodates 3D millimeter-scaled features that are difficult to achieve by either lithographic-based microfabrication or traditional macrofabrication techniques. We exploit this approach to produce millifluidic networks to deliver multiple fluidic components. By taking advantage of the laminar flow, the fluidic components can form liquid jets with distinct patterns, and each pattern has clear boundaries between the liquid phases. Afterwards, droplets with controlled size are fabricated by spraying the liquid jet in an electric field, and subsequently converted to particles after a solidification step. As a demonstration, we fabricate calcium alginate particles with structures of (1) slice-by-slice multiple lamellae, (2) concentric core-shells, and (3) petals surrounding the particle centers. Furthermore, distinct hybrid particles combining two or more of the above structures are also obtained. These compartmentalized particles impart spatially dependent functionalities and properties. To show their applicability, various ingredients, including fruit juices, drugs, and magnetic nanoparticles are encapsulated in the different compartments as proof-of-concepts for applications, including food, drug delivery, and bioassays. Our 3D printed electro-millifluidic approach represents a convenient and robust method to extend the range of structures of functional particles.published_or_final_versio

A soft processor overlay with tightly-coupled FPGA accelerator

FPGA overlays are commonly implemented as coarse-grained reconfigurable architectures with a goal to improve designers’ productivity through balancing flexibility and ease of configuration of the underlying fabric. To truly facilitate full application acceleration, it is often necessary to also include a highly efficient processor that integrates and collaborates with the accelerators while maintaining the benefits of being implemented within the same overlay framework. This paper presents an open-source soft processor that is designed to tightly-couple with FPGA accelerators as part of an overlay framework. RISC-V is chosen as the instruction set for its openness and portability, and the soft processor is designed as a 4-stage pipeline to balance resource consumption and performance when implemented on FPGAs. The processor is generically implemented so as to promote design portability and compatibility across different FPGA platforms. Experimental results show that integrated software-hardware applications using the proposed tightly-coupled architecture achieve comparable performance as hardware-only accelerators while the proposed architecture provides additional run-time flexibility. The processor has been synthesized to both low-end and high-performance FPGA families from different vendors, achieving the highest frequency of 268:67MHz and resource consumption comparable to existing RISC-V designs.postprin

Breakup dynamics and dripping-to-jetting transition in a Newtonian/shear-thinning multiphase microsystem

The breakup dynamics in non-Newtonian multiphase microsystems is associated with a variety of industrial applications such as food production and biomedical engineering. In this study, we numerically and experimentally characterize the dripping-to-jetting transition under various flow conditions in a Newtonian/shear-thinning multiphase microsystem. Our work can help to predict the formation of undesirable satellite droplets, which is one of the challenges in dispensing non-Newtonian fluids. We also demonstrate the variations in breakup dynamics between shear-thinning and Newtonian fluids under the same flow conditions. For shear-thinning fluids, the droplet size increases when the capillary number is smaller than a critical value, while it decreases when the capillary number is beyond the critical value. The variations highlight the importance of rheological effects in flows with a non-Newtonian fluid. The viscosity of shear-thinning fluids significantly affects the control over the droplet size, therefore necessitating the manipulation of the shear rate through adjusting the flow rate and the dimensions of the nozzle. Consequently, the droplet size can be tuned in a controlled manner. Our findings can guide the design of novel microdevices for generating droplets of shear-thinning fluids with a predetermined droplet size. This enhances the ability to fabricate functional particles using an emulsion-templated approach. Moreover, elastic effects are also investigated experimentally using a model shear-thinning fluid that also exhibits elastic behaviors: droplets are increasingly deformed with increasing elasticity of the continuous phase. The overall understanding in the model multiphase microsystem will facilitate the use of a droplet-based approach for non-Newtonian multiphase applications ranging from energy to biomedical sciences.postprin

Automatic Nested Loop Acceleration on FPGAs Using Soft CGRA Overlay

Session 1: HLS Toolingpostprin

Manipulation of viscous all-aqueous jets by electrical charging

postprin

Suppressing the Folding of Flowing Viscous Jets Using an Electric Field

In this work, we study the folding and unfolding of flowing viscous jets by imposing an electric field. We demonstrate that a folded viscous jet can be induced to unfold through jet widening in a sufficiently strong electric field. The folded jets unfold above a critical slenderness, which increases as the jet capillary number increases. Our systematic elucidation of the mechanisms behind the controlled folding has important implications on processes such as nozzle designs for industrial applications that rely on the manipulation of high-speed viscous jets, including liquid dispensing, printing, and food processing.published_or_final_versio

珊瑚中微量铀的ID-ICP-MS 高精度测定及其在珊瑚U/Ca 温度计研究中的应用

建立了同位素稀释技术与IC-MS 相结合的ID-ICP-MS 分析方法, 成功测量了取自南海北部的滨珊瑚样品中的微量铀, 获得0.5% 左右的精度。并以此建立南海北部近岸海域的珊瑚U/Ca 温度计, 其温度精度可达士0.5 ℃。ID-ICP-MS, an analytical method that combines isotope dilution technique and ICP-MS method had been developed in our laboratory. Trace uranium of the coral samples from the northern area of the South China Sea had been measured to an accuracy of 0.5%. Depended on these results, a high resolution coral U/Ca thermometer for thes area was established. Monthly average SSTs with a precision of ±0.5℃ were attainable by this U/Ca thermometer.published_or_final_versio

Randomized trial on fluorides and sealants for fissure caries prevention

To investigate the effectiveness of topical fluorides in preventing fissure caries, we conducted a randomized controlled trial with parallel groups. In total, 501 children (1,539 molars, 3,078 sites), mean age 9.1 years, who had at least one sound permanent first molar with deep fissures or fissures with signs of early caries were recruited. They were randomly allocated among four groups: (1) resin sealant, single placement; (2) 5% NaF varnish, semi-annual application; (3) 38% silver diamine fluoride (SDF) solution, annual application; and (4) placebo control. Follow-up examinations were conducted every 6 months by a masked examiner. After 24 months, 485 children (97%) were examined. Proportions of pit/fissure sites with dentin caries in the sealant, NaF, SDF, and control groups were 1.6%, 2.4%, 2.2%, and 4.6%, respectively. A multi-level logistic regression analysis accounting for the effects of data clustering and confounding factors showed that fissures in any of the three treatment groups had significantly lower risks of carious cavity development into dentin than did controls (p < 0.05). We concluded that placement of resin sealant, semi-annual application of NaF varnish, and annual application of SDF solution are all effective in preventing pit and fissure caries in permanent molars (ClinicalTrials.gov number CT01446107).postprin