Electroosmotic flow pumps with polymer frits

Electroosmotic flow (EOF) pumps with flow rates on the order of I ml/min have been designed and fabricated. These pumps use EOF to propel liquid solutions in a compact system with no moving parts. The pumping chamber is filled with densely packed non-porous silica particles, and the particle bed is held in place using two polymeric porous frits. The pump frame is made of acrylic, the frits are made using UV photopolymerization within the custom-built acrylic frame, and the particles are packed using a novel side-bore packing technology. Platinum wire electrodes on both sides of the pump provide the electric field to drive the flow. Deionized water is used as a working fluid in order to minimize Joule heating and increase thermodynamic efficiency. The maximum flow rates and maximum pressures generated by the pumps are 0.8 ml/min and 2 atm, respectively, at 1.0 kV applied voltage. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.