Microfluidic device for inducing separations by freezing and associated method

摘要

A microfluidic device is provided for inducing the separation of constituent elements from a microfluidic sample by introducing phase changes in the microfluidic sample while contained in a microfluidic channel in the device. At least a portion of the microfluidic sample is frozen to cause fractional exclusion of the constituent element from the frozen portion of the microfluidic sample. Different portions of the microfluidic sample may be frozen in different sectors and at different times in order to cause movement in a desired direction of the separated constituent element. Portions of the microfluidic sample may be frozen in a sequential order of adjacent sectors within the microfluidic channel in order to cause sequential movement of the excluded constituent element toward one portion of the microfluidic channel. The frozen portion of the microfluidic sample is then thawed, wherein the separated constituent element remains substantially separated from the thawed, purified microfluidic sample.

主权项

1. A method for separating a constituent element from a fluidic sample, the method comprising:
providing a fluidic device comprising a fluidic channel and an actuation module including Peltier devices operatively interfaced with the fluidic channel, the fluidic channel having a length and a width; introducing a portion of a fluidic sample into the fluidic channel in the fluidic device; by the Peltier devices, freezing different sectors of the portion of the fluidic sample across the width of the fluidic channel at different times than one another, the freezing of the different sectors at the different times causing fractional exclusion of a constituent element from at least one of the sectors and concentration of the fractionally excluded constituent element within at least one other of the sectors; removing the fractionally excluded constituent element from the fluidic channel, wherein the remaining sectors of the fluidic sample from which the constituent element has been fractionally excluded include a purified fluidic sample; and removing the purified fluidic sample from the fluidic channel such that the removed purified fluidic sample remains substantially separated from the removed fractionally excluded constituent element.