Dynamic Behavior of Membrane-Bound Capsules
Christopher Blais and Nivedita Gupta
Department of Chemical Engineering
Aspiration Experiments
Motivation
Capsules occur in various applications
Capsule Deformation Studies
9.86 kPa
• Food
• Carbonless Paper
• Cosmetics
• Textiles
• Pharmaceuticals
• Living cells
13.9 kPa
Syringe
containing
capsules
Axisymmetric
PDMS Channel
High Speed
CMOS Camera
Capture
Syringe pump set
to 1-5 mL/s
Deformability of diseased cells as a diagnostic tool
𝑅𝑐
1
𝑅𝑐
∆𝑃 = 2𝑇 (
−
𝑅𝑝
∆𝐴 = 2𝜋[𝑅𝑝 ∙ ∆𝐿 1 −
]
𝑅𝑐
1
)
𝑅𝑝
𝐿
Process
Waste
𝑅𝑝
Data Analysis in
Vision assist and
Matlab
𝑇 = K ∙ ∆𝐴/𝐴0
𝑑𝑑
𝜅=
𝑑𝑠
10
5 mL/min
Isotropic Tension (N/m)
Bow et al., Lab on a Chip 11, 1065 (2011)
 A 
T  168.4 

A
 o
1
for
60
0.03
 A 
T  504.1

A
 o
30% HSA
0.01
HSA
0.1
Area Dilation (ΔA/Ao)
0.02
-2
-1
0
1
2
Reaction Time
10 min
20 min
30 min
60 min
23
Frequency
13
6
Crosslinking Reaction in
Terephthaloyl Chloride
forms membrane
Dropwise addition of HSA
solution in Silicon oil with
magnetic stirring
Store capsules in Isotonic
Saline Solution
0.3-0.4
0.4-0.5 0.5-0.6 0.6-0.7
Capsule Diameter (mm)
6
4
0.7-0.8
0.8-0.9
5
-3
-2
-1
Centermass (mm)
0
1
2
20%
Robust capsules with 20 minute
reaction time and 20 – 30% HSA
Constant drop size and uniform
membrane thickness with T-junction
method
Channel
Diameter
250 µm
4
5
30% HSA capsule shows negligible deformation
• Robust capsules for 20% - 30% HSA solution with 20 minute
reaction time
• Compressibility modulus for 25% HSA capsules was 168 N/m
and 30% HSA capsules was 504 N/m
• Preliminary experiments set up for drop deformation through
a sudden contraction
• Compare capsule behavior to numerical simulations
• Experiment with other Proteins or polymers
Drain Bulk and wash with IPA
and DI Water
3
Centermass (mm)
Future Work
HSA
Solution
1 µL/min
Store capsules in Isotonic
Saline Solution
4
30%
Average diameter ~ 0.4 mm
Silicon Oil
1 µL/min
Crosslinking Reaction in
Terephthaloyl Chloride
forms membrane
0.2-0.3
5
Polydisperse distribution of capsules using emulsion method
T-junction Method
HSA Drop
formation at TJunction
HSA Concentration
10%
Drain Bulk and wash with IPA
and DI Water
3
Summary
Emulsion Method
Add
Terephthaloyl Chroride
20
0
Fabrication and Optimization of HSA Capsules
15
30
10
0
Compressibility modulus for 30% HSA capsules larger than for 25%
HSA capsule
40
0.01
-3
• Compare deformation of capsules translating through a
sudden contraction with numerical simulations
𝐿−𝑊
𝐿+𝑊
50
0.1
0.001
modulus
𝑊
Δ =
𝐿
0.04
25% HSA
compressibility
30% HSA
Velocity (mm/s)
• Fabricate robust capsules made from Human Serum
Albumin (HSA)
Deformation Parameter, 
Goals of Research
• Measure area
capsules
k = 0.65
dd
T-junction can be scaled from 50 mm to
1 mm in size
Droplets not spherical due to nonNewtonian HSA solution
•
Bovine serum albumin
•
Alginate
Acknowledgements
UNH Hamel Center for Undergraduate Research
Robert Carroll (PhD 2014 UNH)
Brian Zukas (MS 2014 UNH; PhD 2016 UNH)