An experimental and numerical investigation into the effects of the PZT actuator shape in polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) peristaltic micropumps

Utilizing a solvent-assisted bonding process, two diffuser-type polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) peristaltic micropumps are fabricated with a linear array of circular microchambers with a depth and diameter of 15 m and 7 mm, respectively, actuated using either square or circular PZT actuators. Experimental trials are performed to characterize the performance of the two micropumps under driving frequencies ranging from 80 to 150 Vpp and actuation frequencies in the range of 10 Hz to 1 kHz. The results reveal that the micropump with square PZT actuators generates a maximum pumping rate and back pressure of 217 l/min and 9.2 kPa, respectively, while the micropump with circular actuators generates a maximum flow rate of 131 l/min and a back pressure of 2.7 kPa. ANSYS finite element simulations demonstrate two events. First, given an equivalent surface area, the circular actuators undergo a greater displacement than the square actuators under given actuation conditions. In other words, the circular actuator design is more efficient to represent a higher ratio of the displacement to the actuation area (d/A). However, the circular actuators with the surface area of 38.47 mm² are smaller than the square actuators (49 mm²). In addition, it is inferred that the relatively poorer performance of the circular actuators is due in part to thermal damage of the PZT patches during their removal from the bulk PZT chip using a laser cutting device in the pump fabrication process. Secondly, when the shape of the effective working area for the actuation is rectangular which is usual in a MEMS design, the rectangular actuator with length of 7 mm has significantly higher displacement (0.71 m) than that of the circular actuator with diameter of 7 mm (0.396 m). Consequently, a rectangular actuator design presents a more practical solution for higher performance of micro-actuators.