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Step-by-step : A microfluidic (PDMS) staircase device for size sorting microparticles down to 25 µm using a 3D-printed mold
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Researchers designed a simple microfluidic device using a 3D-printed staircase mold to sort microparticles by size down to 25 µm. The device is inexpensive and accessible to researchers without specialized microfabrication equipment. Size-sorting tools like this could help standardize microplastic extraction and analysis from liquid samples.
Microparticles are ubiquitous and span from living matter to microplastics to inorganic materials. Their detection and identification must be more accessible and time efficient. Microfluidic devices can filter microparticles from liquids, but fabricating microfluidics with lateral resolutions of a few tens of microns is complex, lengthy, and outside the reach of most scientists researching microparticles. In this article, we show how to use height features in a channel instead of relying on lateral elements for separating particles. The height features can be as small as 25 µm, along the Z axis, using consumer-grade 3D printers. We show the potential of such microfluidic devices for size-sorting parasite eggs such as Schistosoma haematobium, microplastics, and zooplankton.
More Papers Like This
Step-by-step : A microfluidic (PDMS) staircase device for size sorting microparticles down to 25 µm using a 3D-printed mold
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers developed a microfluidic PDMS staircase device fabricated from consumer-grade 3D-printed moulds that uses height features rather than lateral elements to size-sort microparticles down to 25 µm. The device successfully sorted Schistosoma haematobium parasite eggs, microplastics, and zooplankton samples, offering a simpler and more accessible alternative to conventional microfluidic fabrication for microparticle research.
Centrifugal microfluidic chip for multi-stage sorting and detection of microplastics at micron scale
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Researchers developed a centrifugal microfluidic chip that can sort and detect microplastics smaller than 63 micrometers by separating them into different size groups based on spinning forces. The chip achieved about 87% capture rate for polystyrene microspheres and also worked well with irregularly shaped microplastics. This technology offers a faster, more accurate, and simpler alternative to traditional membrane filtration for analyzing tiny microplastics in environmental samples.
In-situ microplastic pre-treatment and sorting using an inertial microfluidic device
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Researchers developed an inertial microfluidic device capable of pre-treating and sorting microplastics in situ, enabling separation of particles by size and shape prior to chemical analysis or recycling. The system demonstrates the viability of microfluidics for scalable microplastic processing, supporting both environmental monitoring and potential resource recovery applications.
Review: Impact of microfluidic cell and particle separation techniques on microplastic removal strategies
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Researchers reviewed how microfluidic technology — the same miniaturized tools used in medical diagnostics to sort cells — could be adapted to separate and recover microplastics from water, offering a more precise and scalable alternative to conventional filtration methods used in wastewater treatment.
Design and Develop a Microfluidic Device for Micro Plastics Monitoring and Separation from Water
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Researchers built a small, portable chip that can sort and count microplastic particles in water samples, sized between 10 and 100 micrometers, using fluid flow and electrical sensing. In lab testing, the device separated particles with over 92% efficiency and used low power, with a smartphone able to read results on site.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.