Adaptive Droplets Transport Through Coupled Flow Paths

柔性和自适应材料系统具有在微观尺度上产生动态变形的能力，与各种令人兴奋的新应用相关，例如组织工程，自适应光学，柔性电子和软机器人。本课题旨在研究和分析微流体环境中柔性膜界面通道中流体和液滴的输运。所提出的用于多相流实验的微流体装置由两个由柔性薄膜分隔的传输通道组成，允许在传输通道内定义层流控制，液滴的精确定位，并有机会分析液滴在通道内的运动和传输以及通道之间的相互关系。由于运动液滴和外加流作用于膜的两侧，薄弹性膜会在作用的运动接触线、流致压差和剪切效应上产生特异性响应和局部变形，对两个通道内的输运特性产生强烈影响。此外，利用电流体动力学（EHD），将被应用于与膜的流动诱导不稳定性和两个传输通道中的反馈相互作用，稳定和改变，流动物质和信息传输的耦合和交叉通信将被放大和具体塑造。这种由膜发起的交叉通信将用于移动、适应、控制、转移和停止流体运输路线中的液滴运动和特定流动，并引入具有适应和自我调节能力的流动模式，以及流体运输网络中的长期逻辑联系和操作。

Flexible and adaptive materials systems with their ability to create dynamic deformations on the microscale are relevant to a wide variety of exciting new applications such as in tissue engineering, adaptable optics, flexible electronics and soft robotics. The aim of this project is to study and analyze the transport of fluids and droplets in channels interfaced by flexible membranes in microfluidic environment. The proposed microfluidic setup for multiphase flow experiments, consisting of two transport channels separated by a thin flexible membrane, allows for a defined laminar flow-control within transport channels, an exact positioning of droplets and the opportunity to analyze droplet motion and transport within the channels and cross-correlation between the channels. Owing to the moving droplets and applied flow acting on both sides of the membrane, the thin elastic membrane will specifically respond and locally deform on the acting moving contact line, flow-induced pressure differences and shear-induced effects, having a strong impact on the transport properties in both channels. Moreover, using electro-hydrodynamics (EHD), which are going to be applied to interact with, stabilize and modify flow-induced instabilities of the membranes and the feedback in both transport channels, the coupling and cross-communication of the flowing materials and information transport will be amplified and specifically shaped. This membrane-initiated cross-communication will be used to move, adapt, govern, shift and stop droplet motion and specific flows within fluid transport routes and moreover to introduce flow patterns with adaption and self-regulation capabilities as well as on the long term logical links and operations within fluid transport networks.