ON-CHIP GENERATION AND EXTRACTION OF HYDROGEL MICROPARTICLES USING RAILING MICROPOSTS

We present a microfluidic system for continuous on-chip generation, extraction, and washing of alginate microparticles (AMPs). Internal gelation, a technique whereby calcium carbonate nanoparticles are dissociated by acetic acid to trigger the release of calcium ions, was used to gelate the AMPs. To perform on-chip extraction, railing microposts spanning across a laminar oil-water (O/W) interface continuously guides and gently transfers the AMPs from the oil phase into the collecting water phase.