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Design and experimental study of a novel three-way diffuser/nozzle elements employed in valveless piezoelectric micropumps

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Abstract

A novel type of three-way diffuser/nozzle element of valveless piezoelectric micropump is presented, and an orthogonal design of the tube is done by computational fluid dynamics. Comparison of the simulation results between the traditional diffuser/nozzle element and the three-way diffuser/nozzle element shows that the latter has a better performance. The λ defined as the ratio of the total pressure loss coefficient for flow in the negative direction to that in the positive direction of the novel element is 1.2 and 16 % larger than that of the former traditional one as Δp = 10 kPa and Δp = 50 kPa, respectively. Then a three-way diffuser/nozzle element is fabricated, and the experiment is carried out. The results show that the simulation results are in good agreement with the experiment results. The maximum differences between the simulation and experiment are 6.23 % at Δp = 20 kPa in the negative direction and 3.53 % at Δp = 100 kPa in the positive direction when the pressure differences are given from 10 to 100 kPa. The micropump is fabricated, and the experiment results show that the maximum flow rate and back pressure are 0.451 ml/min and 3.11 kPa with the frequency of 225 Hz when the sinusoidal voltage is 100 VP-P.

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Abbreviations

A:

Area of the minimum cross-section

b 1 :

The minimum cross-section width of the divergence tube

b 2 :

Outlet width of the divergence tube

b 3 :

Inlet width of the shunt tube

d :

Subscript of the parameter in positive direction

k j :

Mean value of each factor

L 1 :

Length of the divergence tube

L 2 :

Length of the shunt tube

n :

Subscript of the parameter in negative direction

Δp :

Total pressure drop, including expansion, momentum change, friction, and contraction

\(\mathop q\limits^{\_}\) :

Mean flow rate

Q :

Net flow rate

r :

Radius of the inlet rounded of divergence tube

R j :

Range

T:

Vibration period

V x :

Magnitude of the volume change of the pump chamber

η :

Efficiency of the valveless piezoelectric pump

θ 1 :

Diffuser angle of the divergence tube

θ 2 :

Diffuser angle of the shunt tube

λ :

Ratio of the total pressure loss coefficient for flow in the negative direction to that in the positive direction

\(\mathop v\limits^{\_}\) :

Mean velocity of the minimum cross-section of the diffuser/nozzle element

ξ :

Flow-resistance coefficient

ρ :

Fluid density

φ :

Angle between two shunt tubes

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to acknowledge Professor Zhigang Yang, Professor Guangming Chen, Professor Junwu Kan in Jilin University (China) and Engineer Yu Zhengyin in Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology of Chinese Academy of Sciences for the valuable supported in the fabrication of the tube and devices. Funding: This work was supported by the project of the National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant number: 51276082]; Departments of Education and Finance, Jiangsu Province of P.R.China (A Project Funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education institutions, PAPD) [grant number: SUCAIJIAO (2011) No.8].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Center of Fluid Machinery Engineering and Technology, Jiangsu University, Zhenjian, China

    Shou-qi Yuan & Song Yang

  2. School of Energy and Power Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjian, 212013, China

    Xiu-hua He & Sheng-chuan Cai

  3. Faculty of Science, Jiangsu University, Zhenjian, China

    Zhi-dan Deng

Authors
  1. Shou-qi Yuan
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  2. Song Yang
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  3. Xiu-hua He
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  4. Zhi-dan Deng
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  5. Sheng-chuan Cai
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Xiu-hua He.

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Technical Editor: Francisco Ricardo Cunha.

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Yuan, Sq., Yang, S., He, Xh. et al. Design and experimental study of a novel three-way diffuser/nozzle elements employed in valveless piezoelectric micropumps. J Braz. Soc. Mech. Sci. Eng. 37, 221–230 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40430-014-0176-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40430-014-0176-5

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