• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Process Engineers
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.106-112
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• 2021

Thermoplastic microfluidic devices are used in BioMEMS for medical and biotechnology applications, such as gene extraction, DNA analysis, and virus detection. In this research, a simple fabrication protocol with a commercially available pneumatic hot press is proposed and demonstrated for polycarbonate microfluidic devices. Microfluidic channels with a width of 200 ㎛ and a height of 10 ㎛ were designed and machined onto a brass plate as a mold insert using a CNC milling machine. The resulting microfluidic channels on the mold insert were assessed and found to have an actual width of 198 ㎛ and a height of 10 ± 0.25 ㎛. The microfluidic channels were replicated on a polycarbonate sheet using the proposed replication technique at 146℃ for 20 minutes under a constant load of 2400 kgf. The devices were then naturally cooled to 100℃ while maintaining the same pressure. It was found that the microchannels were successfully replicated in the polycarbonate, with a width of 198 ㎛ and a height of 10.07 ㎛. The proposed replication technique thus offers the rapid mass production of high-quality microfluidic devices at a low cost with a process that, unlike conventional photolithography systems, does not require expensive equipment.