Microfluidics on Paper !!

This may prove to be, as of yet, the biggest breakthrough in Microfluidics. Microfluidics, simply put, is the science of dealing with fluids at the micron and sub-micron levels....but in practical terms it has applications within almost all streams of engineering and technology. Some of the most important applications of microfluidics are being rapidly exposed in medical diagnostics. The actual exploration (development and testing) of this application has been stimed by the exorbitant costs involved in achieving the exceptional level of precision required in dealing with microfluidics. So far, regular work on microfluidics was/is being done with materials such as silicon polymers, glass, specific alloys, etc; basically materials which need special handling, and are relatively new (when compared to paper). While it IS possible to reduce the cost of developing simple microfluidic platforms at laboratory scales for simple technology demonstrations and 'proof-of-concept' activity....it has been so far been impossible to industrialise the technology and use it economically. This is something that might actually change in the foreseeable future now....

Read this to know more. Below is an excerpt.

"By taking advantage of the natural movement of liquid through paper, researchers at Harvard University may have found a way to make microfluidics technology much cheaper. The result could be disposable diagnostic tests simple and abundant enough for use in the developing world.

The field of microfluidics deals with the precise manipulation of tiny quantities of liquid. One of its most promising applications is the so-called lab-on-a-chip, which can work with much smaller fluid samples than larger devices require, potentially allowing for more portable diagnostic tools. But existing microfluidic chips are generally made from comparatively expensive materials like silicon, glass, or plastic and have tiny pumps and valves that can be difficult to manufacture.

Now, Harvard's George Whitesides and his team have built a microfluidic device on a square of paper the size of a pinky fingernail. "It's the first example I've heard of paper microfluidics," says Albert Folch, a bioengineer at the University of Washington who works on microfabrication. "It's really clever because it uses paper as a substrate, which is universally available."