Microfluidic microbubbles and nanobubbles: experiments and mathematical modeling

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We are initiating a collaboration between Toronto Metropolitan University and the University of Oxford. This collaboration will lead to a robust microfluidic platform for generating "designer" microbubbles and nanobubbles. Similar lipid-stabilized bubbles are already clinically approved in biomedicine, as ultrasound contrast agents for the diagnoses of heart disease and cancer, and increasingly as therapeutic agents. However, commercially available microbubbles have large size distributions, which result in sub-optimal imaging and therapeutic effects, and after years of development, no microfluidic bubble-making method has been approved for clinical use.A key challenge is the size of features achievable with conventional microfluidic fabrication methods. Namely, it has not been possible to create microfluidic features that enable robust production of microbubbles small enough for ultrasound applications. Another issue preventing advances in this field is the lack of fundamental understanding of the bubble shrinkage process after bubbles are generated. Namely, only a handful of studies have examined the effect of microfluidic microbubble shrinkage.This international collaboration will combine microfluidic experimentation (TMU) and mathematical modeling (Oxford), to achieve controlled bubble shrinkage, and address important fundamental research questions. The answers to these questions will lead to "next gen" bubble generating systems for biomedical ultrasound applications, and lead to technology adoption by Canadian research hospitals, improving the health of Canadians and generating economic benefits.