On mechanisms of mixing by forced and natural convection in microfluidic devices

Continuous-flow microfluidic devices are applied in the study of microorganisms, in genetic research, production of pharmaceutical substances, lab-on-a-chip technology, biomedicine etc. Some applications require continuous mixing of the solutions that flow through the devices. However, straight-line mechanical mixing methods cannot be used due to the small size of the channels. In this paper, we discuss from a theoretical and experimental point of view the prospects of using various mechanisms of natural or forced convection for efficient mixing of solutions entering a microfluidic chip. Different designs of micromixers operating on gravity-dependent instabilities of the Rayleigh-Taylor type, double diffusion convection, and surface-dependent Marangoni instability are considered. Micromixers, in which the fluid flow is controlled by an electro-osmotic mechanism and directional deformations of the channel walls, are considered as examples of forced convection. For each case, we will provide the assessment of the range of chip sizes in which this mixing mechanism works effectively. The examples of experimental implementation of different mixing principles are given.