Design, fabrication and testing of a micro-Venturi tube for fluid manipulation in a microfluidic system

In this paper, a micro-Venturi tube fabricated with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is studied for interstitial fluid (ISF) transdermal extraction and fluid manipulation in a microfluidic system toward the application of continuous glucose monitoring. The fabrication structure parameters of the PDMS Venturi tube were theoretically analyzed and experimentally validated against the output vacuum efficiency of the Venturi structure. The optimization methods of the Venturi structure were also discussed. In addition, an optimized micro-Venturi structure was proposed and fabricated. A vacuum pressure of less than 86 kPa had been achieved when an external pressure of 240 kPa was applied to this optimized Venturi tube. Both experimental and mathematical results demonstrate the potential applicability of the micro-Venturi tube in ISF transdermal extraction and fluid manipulation. © 2012 IOP Publishing Ltd.link_to_subscribed_fulltex