Microfluidic Pressure Controller

A Low-Cost, Portable Precision Pressure Controller to Drive Microfluidic Systems (June 2019 – Aug. 2019)

Affiliation: Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology, Biosystems and Micromechanics Group

Summer 2019, I developed a portable pressure controller and imaging system to drive microfluidic chips for sepsis detection. Existing pressure and imaging systems are expensive (costing upwards of $10,000), non-portable, and time-inefficient. Using CAD, 3D printing, laser cutting, and Arduino microcontrollers, I created a fully portable system that sets desired pressure based on user input, senses pressure inside the microfluidic valve in real time, automatically pumps the syringe to obtain the desired pressure, and locks pressure in place using a 3-way solenoid valve. The system is modular, with no screws or glue necessary for assembly, costs only about $150 to fabricate, and can be implemented in clinical settings for real-time microfluidic detection of disease.