I-Corps: Microfluidic device for investigation of mineral/liquid interactions

这个I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力源于矿物在我们社会中的重要性。不断增长的世界人口的能源和粮食安全取决于我们对页岩和磷灰石等复杂矿物的了解。混凝土、煤和土壤等不同的关键材料都含有关键的矿物成分。整个矿业都取得了进展，但原料质量下降和环境问题要求该部门进行创新。例如，矿物反应性的分析测试仍然依赖于传统的湿化学装置（例如，烧杯和容量瓶），这不能准确了解杂质和辅助组分的行为。这些杂质通常决定了加工材料的性能。由于美国的实验室测试服务市场规模达71亿美元，因此，可以显著提高实验数据准确性、降低成本和环境足迹的分析设备的商业开发具有明显的机会。I-Corps项目的重点是开发一种微流控设备，用于在矿物样品表面进行化学反应。该设备将岩相学和湿化学分析结合在一个平台上，并将矿物/液体研究的分辨率提高到微米级。最初，这项研究是为了研究农业营养物质从硅酸盐矿物中释放到土壤中天然存在的孔隙中。结果表明，在微观尺度上，这种释放发生的速率比以前认为的要快。随后，验证了该技术在石油和天然气以及采矿业地质样品高通量筛选方面的潜力。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project originates from the importance that minerals plays in our society. Energy and food security for a growing world population depend on improving our understanding of complex minerals such as shales and apatites. Key materials as different as concrete, coal and soil, all feature a key mineral component. Progress has occurred throughout the mineral industry, but decreasing quality of feedstocks and environmental concerns call for innovation in the sector. As an example, analytical testing of minerals reactivity still relies on traditional wet chemistry apparatus (e.g., beaker and volumetric flasks), which do not allow an accurate understanding of impurities and accessory components behavior. Such impurities often determine the performance of the processed material. Since the market of laboratory testing services accounts for US$7.1bn in the US, there is an evident opportunity for commercial development of analytical devices that can significantly improve accuracy of experimental data, minimize cost and environmental footprints.This I-Corps project focuses on the development of a microfluidic device to perform chemical reactions on surfaces of mineral samples. The device combines in one single platform both petrographic and wet chemistry analysis, and enhances the resolution of mineral/liquid investigations to the micrometer scale. Originally, the research was developed to study the release of agricultural nutrients from silicate minerals to the pores that occur naturally in soil. It was demonstrated that at the microscale the rate at which such release occurs is faster than previously thought. Subsequently, the potential of the technology for high throughput screening of geological samples for the oil and gas and mining industries was validated.