Holographic microscopy measurement of lateral migration of erythrocytes in a viscoelastic fluid

摘要

Detailed understanding on the dynamic behaviors of particles or cells under various flow conditions is important for many industrial and biomedical applications.Recently, microfluidic devices for non-Newtonian fluids are receiving great attention.Intrinsic, non-linear, elastic forces are generated in the pressure-driven flows of viscoelastic fluids.They can be used to drive suspended particles away from the walls and focus into the midplane of the channel.This lateral migration behaviors of particles and cells in a viscoelastic fluid are closely affected by channel geometry and particle properties.In the present study, the lateral migrations of microspheres, normal and hardened erythrocytes suspended in a viscoelastic fluid inside a rectangular microchannel were experimentally investigated using a digital in-line holographic microscopy (DIHM).The effects of flow rate and deformability of erythrocytes on the migration characteristics were evaluated experimentally.As a result, the concentration of particles in the channel center plane is increased, as the flow rate increases and the deformability decreases.