Two-dimensional modeling of bio-particles separation by Inertia in micro-channel

Early diagnosis of hypertensive diseases such as cancer plays an essential role in preventing disease progression. The main cause of death from cancer is the reappearance of the disease due to the release of tumor cells in the blood of the patient. Among the various methods that have been devised for monitoring blood in recent years, the techniques based on micro-scale flow have specially been considered. The development of these methods has led to the emergence of microfluidics laboratories on the chips, which their main advantages are low prices and simplicity. Since the particles’ sizes are different in the flow of blood, the direction of these particles in the micro-channels will vary due to the different forces, and therefore they can be analyzed to the design of bio-microchips. In the present study, a two-phase flow containing spherical particles with the dimensions of blood cells was considered, and the forces affecting the particles of this current, including the lift forces and drag forces, were studied using COMSOL software. For this purpose, a micro divergent channel was designed and the effect of ratio of the outlet width to the inlet width (Aspect Ratio) as an effective geometric parameter in the biological particle separation was analyzed. The study of the effect of particle dimensions and various geometric parameters of the channel on bio-particles separation are the main goals of this research. The results show that by increasing the Aspect ratio, focusing of the larger particles would increase at the outlet of micro-channel.