High-performance electromagnetic micropumps fabricated via multi-material jetting additive manufacturing
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Micropumps serve as key sources of liquid propulsion in various microfluidic applications. High-performance with low fabrication complexity and cost is vital for disposable applications and mass production but remain challenging for electromagnetic reciprocating micropumps. Multi-material jetting (MMJ) 3D printing offers an opportunity owing to multi-material integration and high production efficiency while maintaining satisfactory resolution and surface quality for pump performance. However, there has been no previous demonstration of efficient fabrication of cost-effective liquid passive-valve electromagnetic micropumps based on MMJ 3D printing or other additive manufacturing techniques due to challenges in 3D model design and tailored fabrication workflow. This work proposes a new 3D model design to allow high-quality integration of soft and rigid elements and facilitate efficient assembly with good sealing based on a tailored fabrication workflow. Experimental optimization of micropumps is performed by comparing the performance of prototypes with varying chamber volume and membrane thickness. The devices are magnetically actuated wirelessly and exhibit a maximum flow rate and backpressure of 8.7 mL/min and 5.9 kPa at 1 W actuation power for a pump diaphragm diameter of 8 mm. Low material cost, estimated to be 1.1 £ per micropump, has been achieved. The membrane's viscoelastic behavior during operation is characterized. Flow rate stability tests show the coefficient of variation down to 6–11 % for an instant flow rate ranging from 4 to 7 mL/min, indicating feasibility in practical applications. These results suggest the great promise of MMJ 3D printing for low-cost, high-performance, miniature micropumps suitable for low-voltage disposable applications and mass production.
Date Issued
2025-09-25
Date Acceptance
2025-11-28
Citation
Additive Manufacturing, 2025, 114
ISSN
2214-8604
Publisher
Elsevier BV
End Page
10508
Journal / Book Title
Additive Manufacturing
Volume
114
Copyright Statement
© 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
License URL
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
105038
Date Publish Online
2025-11-29