Surface tension-driven microfluidic flows offer low-cost solutions for blood diagnostics due to the pump-less flow handling. Knowledge of the influence of the biomechanical properties of blood on such flows is key to design such devices; however, a systematic examination of that influence is lacking in the literature. We report on the effects of specific hemorheological factors for flows in a superhydrophilic microchannel. Whole human blood and erythrocyte suspensions in phosphate buffer and dextran solutions were tested. Heat-treated counterparts of the aforementioned samples were produced to alter the deformability of the cells. The flow of the samples was imaged and characterized using micro-particle image velocimetry and tracking techniques to probe the effects of hematocrit, and erythrocyte aggregation and deformability. Meniscus velocities, velocity profiles in the channel, and local and bulk shear rates were derived. The mean velocity of blood was affected by the increasing sample viscosity and the reduced erythrocyte deformability as expected. The increased erythrocyte aggregation appeared to affect more the shape of the velocity profiles in the normal, compared to the heat-treated samples. Very high shear rates are observed in the early stages of the flow, suggesting high erythrocyte disaggregation, persisting sufficiently strong until the flow reaches the end of the channel.
References
1.
E. K.
Sackmann
, A. L.
Fulton
, and D. J.
Beebe
, “The present and future role of microfluidics in biomedical research
,” Nature
507
, 181
–189
(2014
).2.
B.
Weigl
, G.
Domingo
, P.
Labarre
, and J.
Gerlach
, “Towards non- and minimally instrumented, microfluidics-based diagnostic devices
,” Lab Chip
8
, 1999
–2014
(2008
).3.
J. H.
Tsui
, W.
Lee
, S. H.
Pun
, J.
Kim
, and D. H.
Kim
, “Microfluidics-assisted in vitro drug screening and carrier production
,” Adv. Drug Delivery Rev.
65
, 1575
–1588
(2013
).4.
E.
Berthier
and D. J.
Beebe
, “Flow rate analysis of a surface tension driven passive micropump
,” Lab Chip
7
, 1475
–1478
(2007
).5.
Q.
Zhong
, H.
Ding
, B.
Gao
, Z.
He
, and Z.
Gu
, “Advances of microfluidics in biomedical engineering
,” Adv. Mater. Technol.
4
, 1800663
(2019
).6.
C. K.
Chang
, C. C.
Lai
, and C. K.
Chung
, “Numerical analysis and experiments of capillarity-driven microfluid chip
,” in 6th IEEE International Conference on Nano/Micro Engineered and Molecular Systems (NEMS)
, 2011
.7.
C. F.
Kung
, C. F.
Chiu
, C. F.
Chen
, C. C.
Chang
, and C. C.
Chu
, “Blood flow driven by surface tension in a microchannel
,” Microfluid. Nanofluid.
6
, 693
–697
(2009
).8.
J.
Berthier
et al., “Whole blood spontaneous capillary flow in narrow V-groove microchannels
,” Sens. Actuators, B
206
, 258
–267
(2015
).9.
D.
Erickson
, D.
Li
, and C. B.
Park
, “Numerical simulations of capillary-driven flows in nonuniform cross-sectional capillaries
,” J. Colloid Interface Sci.
250
, 422
–430
(2002
).10.
A. A.
Saha
, S. K.
Mitra
, M.
Tweedie
, S.
Roy
, and J.
McLaughlin
, “Experimental and numerical investigation of capillary flow in SU8 and PDMS microchannels with integrated pillars
,” Microfluid. Nanofluid.
7
, 451
–465
(2009
).11.
Y. F.
Chen
et al., “Surface tension driven flow for open microchannels with different turning angles
,” Microfluid. Nanofluid.
5
, 193
–203
(2008
).12.
N.
Ichikawa
, K.
Hosokawa
, and R.
Maeda
, “Interface motion of capillary-driven flow in rectangular microchannel
,” J. Colloid Interface Sci.
280
, 155
–164
(2004
).13.
J.
Berthier
et al., “On the halt of spontaneous capillary flows in diverging open channels
,” Med. Eng. Phys.
48
, 75
–80
(2017
).14.
J.
Berthier
et al., “Spontaneous capillary flow in curved, open microchannels
,” Microfluid. Nanofluid.
20
, 100
(2016
).15.
J. J.
Lee
, J.
Berthier
, A. B.
Theberge
, and E.
Berthier
, “Capillary flow in open microgrooves: Bifurcations and networks
,” Langmuir
35
, 10667
(2019
).16.
D.
Gosselin
et al., “Viscoelastic capillary flow: The case of whole blood
,” AIMS Biophys.
3
, 340
(2016
).17.
J.
Wang
, W.
Huang
, R. S.
Bhullar
, and P.
Tong
, “Modeling of surface-tension-driven flow of blood in capillary tubes
,” Mech. Chem. Biosyts.
1
, 161
–167
(2004
).18.
E. M.
Cherry
and J. K.
Eaton
, “Shear thinning effects on blood flow in straight and curved tubes
,” Phys. Fluids
25
, 73104
(2013
).19.
N.
Kubochkin
and T.
Gambaryan-Roisman
, “Surface force-mediated dynamics of droplets spreading over wetting films
,” Phys. Fluids
33
, 122107
(2021
).20.
J.
Lei
, Z.
Xu
, F.
Xin
, and T. J.
Lu
, “Dynamics of capillary flow in an undulated tube
,” Phys. Fluids
33
, 052109
(2021
).21.
Y.
Wang
, B. B.
Nunna
, N.
Talukder
, E. E.
Etienne
, and E. S.
Lee
, “Blood plasma self-separation technologies during the self-driven flow in microfluidic platforms
,” Bioengineering
8
, 94
(2021
).22.
H.
Sakamoto
, R.
Hatsuda
, K.
Miyamura
, and S.
Sugiyama
, “Plasma separation PMMA device driven by capillary force controlling surface wettability
,” Micro Nano Lett.
7
, 64
(2012
).23.
M.
Sneha Maria
, P. E.
Rakesh
, T. S.
Chandra
, and A. K.
Sen
, “Capillary flow of blood in a microchannel with differential wetting for blood plasma separation and on-chip glucose detection
,” Biomicrofluidics
10
, 054108
(2016
).24.
Y. J.
Chang
, Y. T.
Lin
, and C. C.
Liao
, “Chamfer-type capillary stop valve and its microfluidic application to blood typing tests
,” SLAS Technol.
24
, 188
–195
(2019
).25.
P.
Dunne
et al., “Liquid flow and control without solid walls
,” Nature
581
, 58–62
(2020
).26.
R.
Lima
, S.
Wada
, M.
Takeda
, K. i.
Tsubota
, and T.
Yamaguchi
, “In vitro confocal micro-PIV measurements of blood flow in a square microchannel: The effect of the haematocrit on instantaneous velocity profiles
,” J. Biomech.
40
, 2752
–2757
(2007
).27.
R.
Lima
, S.
Wada
, K. I.
Tsubota
, and T.
Yamaguchi
, “Confocal micro-PIV measurements of three-dimensional profiles of cell suspension flow in a square microchannel
,” Meas. Sci. Technol.
17
, 797
–808
(2006
).28.
R.
Lima
et al., “Radial dispersion of red blood cells in blood flowing through glass capillaries: The role of hematocrit and geometry
,” J. Biomech.
41
, 2188
–2196
(2008
).29.
J. M.
Sherwood
, J.
Dusting
, E.
Kaliviotis
, and S.
Balabani
, “The effect of red blood cell aggregation on velocity and cell-depleted layer characteristics of blood in a bifurcating microchannel
,” Biomicrofluidics
6
, 024119
(2012
).30.
J. M.
Sherwood
, E.
Kaliviotis
, J.
Dusting
, and S.
Balabani
, “Hematocrit, viscosity and velocity distributions of aggregating and non-aggregating blood in a bifurcating microchannel
,” Biomech. Model. Mechanobiol.
13
, 259
–273
(2014
).31.
J. M.
Sherwood
, D.
Holmes
, E.
Kaliviotis
, and S.
Balabani
, “Spatial distributions of red blood cells significantly alter local haemodynamics
,” PLoS One
9
, e100473
(2014
).32.
E.
Kaliviotis
, D.
Pasias
, J. M.
Sherwood
, and S.
Balabani
, “Red blood cell aggregate flux in a bifurcating microchannel
,” Med. Eng. Phys.
48
, 23
–30
(2017
).33.
E.
Kaliviotis
, J. M.
Sherwood
, and S.
Balabani
, “Partitioning of red blood cell aggregates in bifurcating microscale flows
,” Sci. Rep.
7
, 44563
(2017
).34.
E.
Kaliviotis
, J. M.
Sherwood
, and S.
Balabani
, “Local viscosity distribution in bifurcating microfluidic blood flows
,” Phys. Fluids
30
, 030706
(2018
).35.
M. E.
Haque
, A.
Matin
, X.
Wang
, and M.
Kersaudy-Kerhoas
, “Effects of syringe pump fluctuations on cell-free layer in hydrodynamic separation microfluidic devices
,” Phys. Fluids
33
, 073317
(2021
).36.
W. H.
Reinhart
, N. Z.
Piety
, and S. S.
Shevkoplyas
, “Influence of red blood cell aggregation on perfusion of an artificial microvascular network
,” Microcirculation
24
, e12317
(2017
).37.
R.
Mehri
, J.
Laplante
, C.
Mavriplis
, and M.
Fenech
, “Investigation of blood flow analysis and red blood cell aggregation
,” J. Med. Biol. Eng.
34
, 469
–474
(2014
).38.
R.
Mehri
, C.
Mavriplis
, and M.
Fenech
, “Red blood cell aggregates and their effect on non-Newtonian blood viscosity at low hematocrit in a two-fluid low shear rate microfluidic system
,” PLoS One
13
, e0199911
(2018
).39.
A.
Passos
et al., “The effect of deformability on the microscale flow behavior of red blood cell suspensions
,” Phys. Fluids
31
, 091903
(2019
).40.
B.
Czaja
et al., “The influence of red blood cell deformability on hematocrit profiles and platelet margination
,” PLoS Comput. Biol.
16
, e1007716
(2020
).41.
A. U.
Alam
, M. M. R.
Howlader
, and M. J.
Deen
, “The effects of oxygen plasma and humidity on surface roughness, water contact angle and hardness of silicon, silicon dioxide and glass
,” J. Micromech. Microeng.
24
, 035010
(2014
).42.
S.
Luo
and C. P.
Wong
, “Effect of UV/ozone treatment on surface tension and adhesion in electronic packaging
,” IEEE Trans. Compon. Packag. Technol.
24
, 43
–49
(2001
).43.
I.
Topala
, N.
Dumitrascu
, and V.
Pohoata
, “Influence of plasma treatments on the hemocompatibility of PET and PET + TiO2 films
,” Plasma Chem. Plasma Process.
28
, 535
–551
(2008
).44.
H.-M.
Kim
, S. B.
Seo
, D. Y.
Kim
, K.
Bae
, and S. Y.
S
, “Enhanced hydrophilic property of TiO2 thin film deposited on glass etched with O2 plasma
,” Trans. Electr. Electron. Mater.
14
, 152
–155
(2013
).45.
D.
Pasias
, A.
Passos
, G.
Constantinides
, S.
Balabani
, and E.
Kaliviotis
, “Surface tension driven flow of blood in a rectangular microfluidic channel: Effect of erythrocyte aggregation
,” Phys. Fluids
32
, 071903
(2020
).46.
S.
Xue
, B. K.
Lee
, and S.
Shin
, “Disaggregating shear stress: The roles of cell deformability and fibrinogen concentration
,” Clin. Hemorheol. Microcirc.
55
, 231
–240
(2013
).47.
O. K.
Baskurt
et al., “Comparison of three instruments for measuring red blood cell aggregation
,” Clin. Hemorheol. Microcirc.
43
, 283
–298
(2009
).48.
O. K.
Baskurt
et al., “Comparison of three commercially available ektacytometers with different shearing geometries
,” Biorheology
46
, 251
(2009
).49.
J. T.
Horobin
, S.
Sabapathy
, and M. J.
Simmonds
, “Red blood cell tolerance to shear stress above and below the subhemolytic threshold
,” Biomech. Model. Mechanobiol.
19
, 851
–860
(2020
).50.
J. J. J.
Gillissen
, A.
Papadopoulou
, S.
Balabani
, M. K.
Tiwari
, and H. J.
Wilson
, “Suspension rheology of adhesive particles at high shear-rates
,” Phys. Rev. Fluids
5
, 053302
(2020
).51.
L.
La Notte
et al., “Airbrush spray coating of amorphous titanium dioxide for inverted polymer solar cells
,” Int. J. Photoenergy
2012
, 897595
.52.
R. C.
Suciu
et al., “TiO2 thin films prepared by spin coating technique
,” Rev. Roum. Chim.
56
, 607
–612
(2011
).53.
D. A.
Bartholomeusz
, R. W.
Boutté
, and J. D.
Andrade
, “Xurography: Rapid prototyping of microstructures using a cutting plotter
,” J. Microelectromech. Syst.
14
, 1364
–1374
(2005
).54.
J.
Szekely
, A. W.
Neumann
, and Y. K.
Chuang
, “The rate of capillary penetration and the applicability of the washburn equation
,” J. Colloid Interface Sci.
35
, 273
–278
(1971
).55.
K. K.
Kuok
and P. C.
Chiu
, “Application of particle image velocimetry (PIV) for measuring water velocity in laboratory sedimentation tank
,” IRA-Int. J. Technol. Eng.
9
, 16–26
(2017
).56.
C.
Poelma
, A.
Kloosterman
, B. P.
Hierck
, and J.
Westerweel
, “Accurate blood flow measurements: Are artificial tracers necessary?
,” PLoS One
7
, e45247
(2012
).57.
A.
Bouchama
et al., “Classic and exertional heatstroke
,” Nat. Rev. Dis. Prim.
8
, 8
(2022
).58.
A. M.
Nilsson
, G. W.
Lucassen
, W.
Verkruysse
, S.
Andersson-Engels
, and M. J. C.
van Gemert
, “Optical properties of human whole blood: changes due to slow heating
,” in Laser-Tissue Interaction and Tissue Optics II
(SPIE
, 1996
), Vol. 2923
, pp. 24
–34
.59.
M.
Amin
, M. A.
Hussain
, D.
Shahwar
, and M.
Hussain
, “Thermal analysis and degradation kinetics of dextran and highly substituted dextran acetates
,” J. Chem. Soc. Pak.
37
, 673
–679
(2015
).60.
M. A.
Masuelli
, “Dextrans in aqueous solution. Experimental review on intrinsic viscosity measurements and temperature effect
,” J. Polym. Biopolym. Phys. Chem.
2013
, 360239
.61.
S.
Chien
and K.
Jan
, “Ultrastructural basis of the mechanism of rouleaux formation
,” Microvasc. Res.
5
, 155
–166
(1973
).62.
H.
Kitamura
et al., “Roles of hematocrit and fibrinogen in red cell aggregation determined by ultrasonic scattering properties
,” Ultrasound Med. Biol.
21
, 827
–832
(1995
).63.
D.
Lerche
and H.
Baumler
, “Moderate heat treatment of only red blood cells (RBC) slows down the rate of RBC-RBC aggregation in plasma
,” Biorheology
21
, 393
(1984
).64.
E. W.
Merrill
, E. R.
Gilliland
, T. S.
Lee
, and E. W.
Salzman
, “Blood rheology: Effect of fibrinogen deduced by addition
,” Circ. Res.
18
, 437
(1966
).65.
P.
Snabre
, M.
Bitbol
, and P.
Mills
, “Cell disaggregation behavior in shear flow
,” Biophys. J.
51
, 795
–807
(1987
).66.
J.
Dupire
, M.
Socol
, and A.
Viallat
, “Full dynamics of a red blood cell in shear flow
,” Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A.
109
, 20808
(2012
).67.
N. N.
Firsov
, A. V.
Priezzhev
, and O. M.
Ryaboshapka
, “Study of erythrocyte-aggregation kinetics in shear flow in vitro by light-scattering technique
,” in Proc. SPIE 1981, Optical Methods of Biomedical Diagnostics and Therapy
(1993
).68.
E.
Kaliviotis
and M.
Yianneskis
, “Blood viscosity modelling: Influence of aggregate network dynamics under transient conditions
,” Biorheology
48
(2
), 127
–147
(2018
).69.
A. L.
Rakow
and R. M.
Hochmuth
, “Effect of heat treatment on the elasticity of human erythrocyte membrane
,” Biophys. J.
15
, 1095
–1100
(1975
).70.
G. B.
Nash
and H. J.
Meiselman
, “Alteration of red cell membrane viscoelasticity by heat treatment: Effect on cell deformability and suspension viscosity
,” Biorheology
22
, 73
–84
(1985
).71.
A.
Sammartano
, M.
Scarlattei
, S.
Migliari
, G.
Baldari
, and L.
Ruffini
, “Validation of in vitro labeling method for human use of heat-damage red blood cells to detect splenic tissue and hemocateretic function
,” Acta Biomed.
90
, 275
–280
(2019
).72.
M.
Yoshino
and K.
Murakami
, “A kinetic study of the inhibition of yeast AMP deaminase by polyphosphate
,” Biochim. Biophys. Acta, Protein Struct. Mol. Enzymol.
954
, 271
–276
(1988
).73.
H. L.
Atkins
, A. G.
Goldman
, and R. G.
Fairchild
, “Splenic sequestration of 99mTc labeled, heat treated red blood cells
,” Radiology
136
, 501
–503
(1980
).74.
C. J.
Bustamante
, Y. R.
Chemla
, S.
Liu
, and M. D.
Wang
, “Optical tweezers in single-molecule biophysics
,” Nat. Rev. Methods Primers
1
, 25
(2021
).75.
Z.
Liu
, H.
Li
, and Y.
Qiang
, “Computational modeling of the biomechanics and biorheology of heated red blood cells nature-inspired hierarchical advanced material design view project biology of red blood cells view project
,” Artic. Biophys. J.
120
(21
), 4663
–4671
(2021
).76.
H.
Seidner
, G.
Gunter
, S.
Weber-Fishkin
, and M.
Frame
, “Erythrocyte aggregation in hyperthermic hypoxic conditions significantly related to self-identified race
,” FASEB J.
35
, 04035
(2021
).77.
J.
Zhou
et al., “Isolation of cells from whole blood using shear-induced diffusion
,” Sci. Rep.
8
, 9411
(2018
).78.
M.
Lopez
and M. D.
Graham
, “Enhancement of mixing and adsorption in microfluidic devices by shear-induced diffusion and topography-induced secondary flow
,” Phys. Fluids
20
, 053304
(2008
).© 2022 Author(s). Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing.
2022
Author(s)
You do not currently have access to this content.
