1. What are the contributions in "3d printed microfluidic devices" ?
The authors present methods based on 3D printing to realize microfluidic chip holders with reliable fluidic and electric connections.. The combination of silicon/glass microfluidic chips fabricated with highly-reliable clean-room technology and 3D-printed chip holders for the chip-to-world connection is a promising solution for applications where biocompatibility, optical transparency and accurate sample handling must be assured.
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2. What future works have the authors mentioned in the paper "3d printed microfluidic devices" ?
Future research directions may look to further assess other factors contributing to the reusability of devices.. Additionally, since bacteria can feed on residual samples left in the chip and can further contribute to the fouling problem, bacteria adsorption and cross-contamination studies may be performed.. Other future work may also consider the influence of flow rate.. Finally, in order to achieve the goal of integrating the demonstrated cleaning chip into a functional microfluidic chip, in the future, the cleaning procedure should be automated and self-contained.
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3. What is the role of 3D printing in biomedical research?
Three-dimensional printing can be used for the fabrication of microfluidics, supporting equipment, optical and electrical components, in addition to 3D bioprinting which can incorporate living cells or biomaterials into diagnostic systems.
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4. What are the main types of microfluidic devices described in the literature?
There is a series of 3D-printed microfluidic devices described in the literature, including micromixers [17–19], flow channels [20] and valves [21,22].
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![Figure 11. 3D-printed optics. (A) 3D-printed prism polished with simple benchtop polishing decorated with a layer of gold and used for plasmonic sensing of cholera toxins. Reproduced with permission from [22]. Copyright (2017) American Chemical Society. (B) 3D-printed prismwith a different geometry than (A) used to monitor nanoparticle growth. Reproduced with permission from [22]. Copyright (2017) American Chemical Society.](/figures/figure-11-3d-printed-optics-a-3d-printed-prism-polished-with-18nun282.webp)
![Figure 10. 3D-printed support devices. (A) Soil analysis system with 3D-printed mobile phone holder equipped with a glass slide holder where samples were fixed in a lens in between the mobile camera and the sample holder. This jig has a replaceable filter just above the lens for fluorescence imaging. Reproduced from [115]. Copyright (2018) PLOS available under Creative Commons Attribution. (B) Alternate soil analysis system with the same support components, but modified to hold a microfluidic chip for flowing samples. Reproduced from [115]. Copyright (2018) PLOS available under Creative Commons Attribution. (C) Support device with sample application hole for paper-based electrochemical detection of butyrylcholinesterase activity. Reproduced with permission from [116]. Copyright (2018) Elsevier.](/figures/figure-10-3d-printed-support-devices-a-soil-analysis-system-mehegd6v.webp)
![Figure 9. 3D-printed electronics. (A) 3D-printed tactile electrode sensor. Conductive PDMS doped with carbon nanotubes were printed on PDMS or EcoflexTM to fabricate flexible electrode sensors. Reproduced with permission from [110]. Copyright (2018) IOP Publishing. (B) A 3D-printed graphene/polylactic acid electrode with ring or disc shape. Reproduced with permission from [111]. Copyright (2018) American Chemical Society. (C) A 3D-printed conductive carbon black electrode in different objects from left to right: flexible glove sensor, capacitive buttons and smart vessel. Reproduced from [38]. Copyright (2012) PLOS available under Creative Commons Attribution.](/figures/figure-9-3d-printed-electronics-a-3d-printed-tactile-12aylbta.webp)