Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry 63 (2018) 405–410

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jiec

Customized microfluidic reactor based on droplet formation for the

synthesis of monodispersed silver nanoparticles
Cheol Hwan Kwaka,1, Sung-Min Kanga,1, Euiyoung Jungb,1, Yuvaraj Haldoraic,d,
Young-Kyu Hanc, Woo-Sik Kimb , Taekyung Yub,* , Yun Suk Huha,*
a
WCSL of Integrated Human Airway-on-a-Chip, Department of Biological Engineering, Biohybrid Systems Research Center (BSRC), Inha University, 100 Inha-
ro, Incheon 22212, Republic of Korea
b
Department of Chemical Engineering, Kyung Hee University, 1732 Deogyeong-daero, Giheung-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do 17104, Republic of Korea
c
Department of Energy and Materials Engineering, Dongguk University-Seoul, 30 Pildong-ro 1-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul 04620, Republic of Korea
d
Department of Nanoscience and Technology, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, 641046, India

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Article history:
Received 3 December 2017 A customized droplet-based microfluidic reactor was fabricated for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles
Received in revised form 25 February 2018 (Ag NPs) using silver nitrate (AgNO3) and branched polyethyleneimine (BPEI) as a precursor and a
Accepted 26 February 2018 reducing agent, respectively. The effects of static mixing, temperature, and the volumetric flow rates of
Available online 7 March 2018 AgNO3 and BPEI on the particle size were investigated. The use of a static mixer and the optimization of
the reaction temperature enhanced the monodispersity of the Ag NPs. In addition, the size of the Ag NPs
Keywords: was manipulated by changing the flow rate ratio of AgNO3 to BPEI at 60
C for 60 min.
Customized microfluidic device © 2018 The Korean Society of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights
Silver nanoparticle
reserved.
Droplet formation
T-junction
Static mixer

Introduction used to synthesize complex uniform-sized materials, such as core-

Over the last decade, there has been significant advances in lab-
on-a-chip technology in terms of the fabrication of various
microstructures. The microfluidic devices that are being produced
through this technology are being applied to a range of industrial
fields, such as chemical synthesis [1], drug screening [2], and
clinical assay [3]. On the other hand, chemical synthesis using
microfluidic devices has a disadvantage; a Reynolds number of the
fluid in a microscale channel is so small that uniform mixing is
hardly achieved due to the formation of laminar flow [4].
One approach to improve this problem is the use of a droplet-
based microfluidic system [5], which is based on the droplets
formed using two or more fluids that do not mix with each other.
This can also be used to manage and increase the reaction rate,
which is promoted by mass transfer depending on convection and
diffusion. Furthermore, each droplet can be used as an individual
microreactor, so that the droplet-based microfluidic system can be
* Corresponding authors.
E-mail addresses: tkyu@khu.ac.kr (T. Yu), yunsuk.huh@inha.ac.kr (Y.S. Huh).
1
These authors have contributed equally to this work.
shell particles, quantum dots, and hydrogel microparticles [6].
Metal nanoparticles have been synthesized using microfluidic
platforms, including specific microstructures, such as T-junctions
[7], flow-focusing [8], micro valve [9], and sheath flow [10]. These
platforms have been fabricated using a variety of polymers (e.g.,
PDMS, PMMA, and PC) [11]. However, the use of these polymers
have several limitations. For example, the deformation of micro-
channels occurs by the swelling of the polymer-based platform
because of the organic solvent used in the synthesis of the
nanoparticles [12]. In addition, the microfluidic platforms fabri-
cated through soft lithography have limited flexibility in terms of
customization. Once the microfluidic device has been manufac-
tured, the structure cannot be adjusted [13]. Therefore, these types
of microfluidic devices suppress the response to changes in the
channel length and the structure of microfluidic devices for
effective fluid mixing.
In the viewpoint of material synthesis, the microfluidic system
has a problem of microstructure deformation by an organic
solvent. To solve this problem, a microfluidic device was developed
using materials with excellent solvent resistance (e.g., quartz,
silica, and fluoropolymer) [14,15]. Furthermore, this technology
was developed into a microfluidic system with advantages, such as
easy fabrication, low cost, and lightweight [16,17]. To meet these

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiec.2018.02.040
1226-086X/© 2018 The Korean Society of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
406 C.H. Kwak et al. / Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry 63 (2018) 405–410
requirements, the customized microfluidic reactor, which has
similar advantages to those of the aforementioned modular
microfluidic device, is proposed in this study.
Recently, a modular microfluidic device suggested the compo-
sition of one microfluidic system through the production and
assembly of individual components with specific functions instead
of the conventional PDMS-based microfluidic device [13,18,19]. The
advantage of a modular microfluidic device is a simple reconfig-
urable device that enables the rapid assembly and surface-
modification of a specific area.
In this study, silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) were synthesized
using the customized microfluidic reactor to evaluate the effective
synthesis and size control of the nanoparticles in this microfluidic
system. The customized microfluidic reactor was fabricated easily
while allowing the simple customization of the system by
assembling single functional microfluidic units that are commer-
cially available. This microfluidic system overcame the limitations
of the device reconfiguration in the PDMS-based microfluidic
platform. The static mixer and T-junction in this microfluidic
reactor were adjusted for mixing and droplet generation,
respectively. In addition, fluoropolymer-based micro tubing was
used as a microfluidic channel to prevent the deformation induced
by the organic solvent. The effect of the static mixer, temperature,
and the volumetric flow rates of the reactants on the particle size
were investigated.
Materials and methods
Fabrication of customized droplet-based microfluidic reactor
The customized microfluidic reactor consisted of three func-
tional elements: micro tubing (DuPont fluorinated ethylene
propylene (FEP) tubing, 1/1600 OD, 0.03000 ID, IDEX, USA), two Tee
connectors, and a static mixer. The first Tee connector (T-junction 1,
Tee Assembly for 1/1600 OD, 0.02000 thru hole, IDEX, USA) was used
for rapid mixing by introducing each of two solutions, an Ag
precursor and reducing agent, to the static mixer. The second Tee
Fig. 1. Customized droplet-based microfluidic reactor fully integrated by T-junction, static mixer, and heating zone. (a) Schematic diagram illustrating the microfluidic reactor
setup. Photograph of (b) droplets formed using the T-junction 2, and (c) static mixer for homogeneous mixing (scale bars are 1 cm).
connector (T-junction 2, Tee, 1/1600 OD, 0.75 mm ID, VICI,
Switzerland) was used to generate the droplet. To mix the
solutions, a precolumn filter (PreColumn PEEK 0.5 mm, IDEX,
USA) was filled with a polyester porous sponge and used as a static
mixer. All reagents were injected using microsyringe pumps
(Legato 200, KD Scientific, USA).
Synthesis of Ag NPs using a droplet-based microfluidic reactor
In a typical experiment, silver nitrate (AgNO3, 99.0%) and
branched polyethyleneimine (BPEI, MW = 750,000, 50 wt% in H2O)
were purchased from Sigma–Aldrich Korea (Seoul, Korea), which
were used as the precursor and a reducing agent, respectively.
Aqueous AgNO3 (33.8 mg mL1) and BPEI (5.07 mg mL1) solutions
were prepared by dissolution in deionized water. For droplet
formation, n-decane (Daejung, Korea) was used as a continuous oil
phase. The microfluidic crystallization of Ag NPs was carried out at
60
C for 60 min. The reaction was quenched by dropping the
reaction product into a 50 mL conical tube filled with isopropyl
alcohol (IPA). Finally, Ag NPs were collected by centrifugation at
12,000 relative centrifugal force for 40 min and washed three times
with IPA to remove the unreacted reactants.
Characterization
X-ray diffraction (XRD, D/Max-2500, Rigaku, Japan) was carried
out using Cu Ka radiation. The Ag NPs for XRD analysis were
prepared by freeze-drying the colloidal Ag NPs overnight using a
lyophilzer (FDS 8508, Ilshin Biobase, Korea) after removing the
unreacted reactants using centrifugation. Thermogravimetric
analysis (TGA, STA 409 PC/NETZSCH, Germany) was conducted
at 25–800
C at a rate of 10
C min1 using N2 as the carrier gas. The
morphology of the Ag NPs was examined by transmission electron
microscopy (TEM, JEM-2100F JEOL, Japan). The purified colloidal
Ag NPs (40 mL) were dropped onto a TEM grid (CF200-CU, Electron
Microscopy Sciences) and dried overnight in a desiccator for TEM
analysis. The optical properties of Ag NPs were analyzed using a
 C.H. Kwak et al. / Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry 63 (2018) 405–410
UV–vis/NIR spectrometer (V-770, Jasco, Japan). The Ag NPs for UV–
vis analysis were collected every 4 min during the reaction up to
28 min. The tubing length was controlled from 55 to 340 cm using
tubing connectors according to the reaction time. The details of the
tubing length are provided in Table S1 in Supporting information.
Results and discussion
Design of customized microfluidic reactor
Fig. 1a presents a schematic diagram of the synthesis of Ag NPs
using a customized microfluidic device. First, aqueous solutions of
a precursor (AgNO3) and a reducing agent (BPEI) were injected
separately through the microchannels and combined in the first T-
junction (T-junction 1) forming laminar flow. After mixing through
the static mixer, a droplet was formed by a continuous oil phase, n-
decane, in the second T-junction (T-junction 2) (Fig. S1, Supporting
information). The length of the aqueous droplets was
712.5  15.2 mm and their shapes were maintained stably
(Fig. S2, Supporting information). The effectiveness of mixing
was confirmed by the color change in the dye solutions, which
passed through the static mixer, as shown in Fig. 1c. The two
different fluids inside the microchannels form laminar flow by the
low Reynolds number and the performance of the static mixer was
confirmed by the generation of a violet color after mixing the red
and blue fluids. This suggests that the static mixer plays a key role
in the formation of an aqueous mixture of AgNO3 and BPEI. The
non-homogeneous mixing by diffusion at the liquid–liquid
interface of AgNO3 and BPEI solutions could be insufficient for
synthesizing the uniform-sized Ag NPs. Therefore, a static mixer
promoted efficient mixing and produced monodispersed Ag NPs. In
this study, it was possible to obtain a uniform and narrow size
distribution of Ag NPs at low temperatures and a short reaction
time achieved by the rapid mass transfer and heat transfer, which
are the advantages of microfluidic systems. Several researchers
Fig. 2. Characteristics of the Ag NPs synthesized at 60
C for 60 min as an optimal reaction condition. (a) XRD, (b) UV–vis spectra, (c) TEM, and (d) HR-TEM of the as-
synthesized Ag NPs.
407
have synthesized Ag NPs using a microfluidic device based on
micro tubing [20–22]. On the other hand, the micro tubing was
used only as a substitute for the PDMS-based device in previous
studies. In contrast, the advantage of using micro tubing for simple
reconfigurability was obvious in the present study.
Synthesis of Ag NPs using a customized microfluidic reactor
Ag NPs were synthesized using the customized microfluidic
reactor at a AgNO3:BPEI injection flow rate ratio of 20:20 mL min1
at 60
C for 60 min, and analyzed by XRD and UV–vis spectroscopy,
and TEM. The XRD peaks (Fig. 2a) at 38.3
, 44.4
, 64.6
, and 77.7
2u
were indexed to the (111), (200), (220), and (311) planes,
respectively, of the face-centered cubic structure of Ag (JCPDS
file No. 04-0783) [23]. Fig. 2b shows a UV–vis spectrum of the as-
synthesized Ag NPs. The peak at 427 nm was assigned to a surface
plasmon resonance (SPR) peak of spherical Ag NPs. It should be
noted that the SPR peak reflected the size, shape, and distribution
status of Ag NPs as well as medium and stabilizer [24]. However,
neither medium nor stabilizer changed when UV–vis spectra were
measured, thus, it was obvious that the physical properties of Ag
NPs, such as their size, shape, and particle distribution were well
preserved for 30 days. In addition, UV–vis spectra of Ag NPs
exhibited the narrow and symmetrical SPR peaks, which indicated
the narrow size distribution and uniform shape of Ag NPs [25].
Therefore, it was confirmed that the high-quality Ag NPs were
produced with uniformity and stability. The TEM image (Fig. 2c)
showed monodispersed Ag NPs with a mean particle size of
4.37  0.73 nm. An HR-TEM (Fig. 2d) image showed a lattice
distance of approximately 2.14 Å, indicating the (200) planes of Ag
[26]. The yield of the Ag NPs synthesized using the customized
microfluidic reactor was calculated to be 72.3% (Fig. S3, Supporting
information), which was lower than that in the batch system
calculated in the previous work [27]. The low yield was due to the
408 C.H. Kwak et al. / Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry 63 (2018) 405–410
fouling of Ag NPs in the channel between the T-junction 1 and T-
junction 2 [22].
Function of static mixer
The homogeneous mixing of reactants is a key factor for the
synthesis of Ag NPs with a narrow size distribution. The droplet-
based microfluidic system enabled the reactants to be mixed
homogeneously inside the droplet by not only the diffusion but
also the convection [28–30]. A shear stress induced a velocity
gradient of the fluid across the channel due to the contact of the
moving droplet with rigid channel wall [31]. Since the droplet was
immiscible with the continuous phase, the locally fast fluid near
the channel axis could not move through the interface. Convective
flows, therefore, were formed to improve mixing efficiency due to
fluids recirculating from the channel axis toward the channel wall
inside droplets. The droplet formation, however, was not enough to
achieve the monodispersity of the Ag NPs. As discussed above, the
aqueous solutions of reactants (AgNO3 and BPEI) could form the
stable laminar flow after introduction through T-junction 1 and
diffuse through the fluid–fluid interface, resulting in a concentra-
tion gradient of the reactants. Unfortunately, the concentration
gradient is maintained even after the formation of droplets to
discourage the homogeneous mixing. A mixing efficiency is
generally an important factor in chemical reaction because the
formation of concentration gradient causes non-homogeneity of
product. In case of a synthesis of nanoparticles, the homogeneity of
particles, such as the uniformity of particle size and morphology is
dependent on the homogeneity of the nucleation, that is, the early
stage of nanoparticle synthesis [32,33]. For this reason, a static
mixer was equipped immediately after the T-junction 1 to provide
the homogeneous reaction environment with fast mixing for a
short time in the nucleation reaction. Fig. 3 presents TEM images of
the as-synthesized Ag NPs with and without the use of a static
mixer. The Ag NPs synthesized without a static mixer (Fig. 3a)
Fig. 3. Effect of the static mixer on the size distribution of Ag NPs synthesized at 60
C for 60 min when the ratio of injection flow rate of AgNO3:BPEI was 20:20 mL min1. TEM
images of the as-synthesized Ag NPs (a) without the use of a static mixer, and (b) using a static mixer. (c, d) Corresponding size distribution curves.
showed non-uniform and aggregated particles. In contrast, the Ag
NPs synthesized using a static mixer (Fig. 3b) were uniform and
well dispersed. Fig. 3c and d shows the corresponding size
distribution curves. The particle size decreased from
6.79  3.20 nm to 4.37  0.73 nm. The only different reaction
condition was the concentration gradient resulted from the mixing
efficiency on the use of static mixer. It was obvious that the size of
Ag NPs was affected by the concentration ratio of reactants. The
effect of concentration ratio of AgNO3 to BPEI on the size of Ag NPs
will be explained later. In addition, the coefficient of variation
decreased from 47.1% to 16.7%. These results suggest that the static
mixer plays a significant role in the synthesis of uniform and well-
dispersed Ag NPs.
Effect of temperature on the crystallization rate
The crystallization rate and size uniformity of the Ag NPs were
investigated according to the temperature (50, 60, and 70
C) and
reaction time from 4 to 28 min at a constant AgNO3 and BPEI flow
rate (20 mL min1). The tubing length for the reaction time control
was adjusted from 55 to 340 cm using a tubing connector. Fig. 4a–c
presents the UV–vis spectra of the as-synthesized Ag NPs at 50, 60,
and 70
C respectively, which were recorded every 4 min for up to
28 min. The crystallization rate of Ag NPs at 50
C was too slow to
take one of the advantages of the microfluidic device, which is a
fast reaction resulting from the convection in a single droplet due
to the high surface area to volume ratio of the droplet [34]. On the
other hand, the crystallization rate of the Ag NPs at 70
C was faster,
so that the reduction of Ag+ reached a maximum at 24 min and the
Ag NPs were ripened over 28 min. The optimal crystallization rate
of the Ag NPs was at 60
C. Crystallization at 50 and 70
C resulted
in Ag NPs with a wide size distribution. In contrast, the Ag NPs
produced at 60
C were monodispersed, as shown in the TEM
images (Fig. 4d–f) and corresponding particle size histograms
(Fig. S4, Supporting information).
 C.H. Kwak et al. / Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry 63 (2018) 405–410 409

Fig. 4. Effects of temperature on the crystallization of Ag NPs. UV–vis spectra of the as-synthesized Ag NPs at (a) 50
C, (b) 60
C, and (c) 70
C for every 4 min up to 28 min. TEM
images of Ag NPs synthesized at (d) 50
C, (e) 60
C, and (f) 70
C for 28 min.

Fig. 5. Manipulation of various sizes of Ag NPs using different injection flow rate ratios of AgNO3:BPEI. (a) UV–vis spectra and (b–f) corresponding TEM images when the
injection flow rates were (b) 30:10 (mL min1), (c) 25:15 (mL min1), (d) 20:20 (mL min1), (e) 15:25 (mL min1), and (f) 10:30 (mL min1) (Fig. 5b–d insets show the size
distribution curves).

Effect of injection flow rate on the particle size
Typically, the high supersaturation of a metal precursor
concentration leads to the formation of smaller nanoparticles
[34]. In addition, a difference in the composition of the reactants
causes a change in the shape and size of the nanoparticles [35].
Therefore, the precursor and a reducing agent ratio could be
optimized to control the particle shape and size. Fig. 5a presents
the UV–vis spectra and TEM images of the as-synthesized Ag NPs at
different AgNO3 and BPEI ratios. Generally, the primary and
secondary amine groups of BPEI reduced Ag+ to metallic silver
(Ag0); the mechanism is discussed in detail elsewhere [27,36]. BPEI
also acts as a stabilizer for the synthesis of Ag NPs and prevent
aggregation due to an electrostatic interaction [37]. The synthetic
condition was fixed to 60
C for 60 min, and the ratios of the
volumetric flow rate of AgNO3 and BPEI were 30:10 (mL min1),
25:15 (mL min1), 20:20 (mL min1), 15:25 (mL min1), and 10:30
(mL min1). As shown in Fig. 5a, a sharp plasmonic absorption peak
was observed at 427 nm when the injection flow rate ratios of
AgNO3 and BPEI were 30:10 (mL min1), 25:15 (mL min1), and
20:20 (mL min1). TEM (Fig. 5b–d) revealed uniform spherical Ag
NPs with a controlled size. This indicates that uniform-sized Ag
410 C.H. Kwak et al. / Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry 63 (2018) 405–410
NPs were synthesized in an Ag-rich environment. The Ag NPs were
11.45  2.00 nm, 9.96  1.59 nm, and 4.37  0.73 nm in size at
AgNO3 and BPEI injection flow rate ratios of 30:10, 25:15, and
20:20 (mL min1), respectively. On the other hand, when the ratios
of injection flow rate were 15:25 and 10:30 (mL min1), a broad
shoulder peak appeared at approximately 500–700 nm, and
aggregated Ag NPs were observed, as shown in Fig. 5e and f. This
means that non-uniform Ag NPs were generated in the Ag-starved
environment because the relatively high concentration of BPEI
allows the Ag NPs to aggregate and grow to larger sizes [38]. It
should be noted that a stable Ag-BPEI complex was formed by the
reaction of AgNO3 with BPEI. It was already mentioned that BPEI
was used as a stabilizer, however, the amount of Ag0 monomer was
insufficient to reach the high level of supersaturation due to the
formation of Ag-BPEI complex in the Ag-starved environment.
Subsequently, the nucleation rate decreased and the slow
nucleation process was promoted for the long reaction time in
the Ag-starved environment, resulting in the formation of Ag NPs
with broad size distribution [39,40]. These results clearly show
that the size of the Ag NPs was controlled easily by changing the
flow rate of AgNO3 and BPEI.
Comparison of the microfluidic and batch systems on the synthesis of
Ag NPs
The microfluidic reactor system was compared with a batch
system on the synthesis of Ag NPs in terms of the reaction time
using UV–vis analysis (Fig. S5a, Supporting information). The
yellow-colored suspensions of the Ag NPs synthesized using the
customized microfluidic reactor exhibited relatively narrow
absorption peaks centered at l = 427 nm; the peak intensity
increased until 60 min and reached a plateau at 70 min. This
suggests that there were no changes in the size and concentration
of Ag NPs after 60 min [41]. On the other hand, the Ag NPs
synthesized in the batch system took approximately 10 h (Fig. S5b,
Supporting Information). In particular, the rapid and efficient
mixing of individual droplets in the microfluidic reactor promotes
a short nucleation time and a homogeneous reaction in the limited
space, compared to a batch reaction with stirring, where a longer
time was needed for a homogeneous reaction [42,43]. Therefore,
the synthesis process using the customized microfluidic reactor
system showed a shorter reaction time compared to the batch
system.
Conclusion
In this study, Ag NPs were synthesized successfully using a
customized microfluidic reactor. The microfluidic reactor consisted
of micro tubing as microchannels, Tee connectors for the
construction of T-junctions, and a static mixer for homogeneous
mixing in a moment. The Ag NPs were typically monodispersed
and their sizes were manipulated from 4.37 to 11.45 nm by
changing the volumetric flow rate ratios of AgNO3:BPEI from 20:20
to 30:10 mL min1 at an optimized temperature of 60
C for 60 min
of reaction. The customized microfluidic reactor had the following
advantages: (i) the reactor was very easy and flexible to fabricate
because all components were removable and reconstructible, and
(ii) the size of the Ag NPs was controlled precisely by simply
changing the injection flow rate of the precursor and reducing
agent. A device with complicated 3D assembled structure,
however, is difficult to fabricate using commercial products
because most of them were designed to connect linearly to each
other. Therefore, the microfluidic reactor proposed in this study is
suitable for material synthesis applications requiring temperature
control and mixing with a range of concentrations of chemicals.
The customized microfluidic reactor will be a promising platform
for the synthesis of several noble metal nanoparticles providing
easy control of the device, low cost, and high chemical resistance.
Acknowledgment
This work was supported by the National Research Foundation
of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (No.
2014R1A5A1009799).
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data associated with this article can be found, in
the online version, at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiec.2018.02.040.
References
[1] A. Huebner, S. Sharma, M. Srisa-Art, F. Hollfelder, J.B. Edel, A.J. deMello, Lab
Chip 8 (2008) 1244.
[2] J.Q. Boedicker, L. Li, T.R. Kline, R.F. Ismagilov, Lab Chip 8 (2008) 1265.
[3] M.D. Tarn, N. Pamme, Expert Rev. Mol. Diagn. 11 (2011) 711.
[4] H.M. Xia, S.Y.M. Wan, C. Shu, Y.T. Chew, Lab Chip 5 (2005) 748.
[5] J.D. Tice, H. Song, A.D. Lyon, R.F. Ismagilov, Langmuir 19 (2003) 9127.
[6] C.-X. Zhao, L. He, S.Z. Qiao, A.P.J. Middelberg, Chem. Eng. Sci. 66 (2011) 1463.
[7] T. Thorsen, R.W. Roberts, F.H. Arnold, S.R. Quake, Phys. Rev. Lett. 86 (2001)
4163.
[8] S.L. Anna, N. Bontoux, H.A. Stone, Appl. Phys. Lett. 82 (2003) 364.
[9] S. Zeng, B. Li, X.o. Su, J. Qin, B. Lin, Lab Chip 9 (2009) 1340.
[10] A.S. Utada, E. Lorenceau, D.R. Link, P.D. Kaplan, H.A. Stone, D.A. Weitz, Science
308 (2005) 537.
[11] D. Ogonczyk, J. Wegrzyn, P. Jankowski, B. Dabrowski, P. Garstecki, Lab Chip 10
(2010) 1324.
[12] N.S.G.K. Devaraju, M.A. Unger, Lab Chip 11 (2011) 1962.
[13] K.C. Bhargava, B. Thompson, N. Malmstadt, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 111
(2014) 15013.
[14] K. Ren, J. Zhou, H. Wu, Acc. Chem. Res. 46 (2013) 2396.
[15] P.H. Hoang, C.T. Nguyen, J. Perumal, D.-P. Kim, Lab Chip 11 (2011) 329.
[16] S. Marre, K.F. Jensen, Chem. Soc. Rev. 39 (2010) 1183.
[17] S.B. Ali Asgar, J. Preetha, P. Andrea, P. Ian, J. Micromech. Microeng. 17 (2007) 42.
[18] K.G. Lee, K.J. Park, S. Seok, S. Shin, D.H. Kim, J.Y. Park, Y.S. Heo, S.J. Lee, T.J. Lee,
RSC Adv. 4 (2014) 32876.
[19] F. Benito-Lopez, M. Antonana-Diez, V.F. Curto, D. Diamond, V. Castro-Lopez,
Lab Chip 14 (2014) 3530.
[20] X.Z. Lin, A.D. Terepka, H. Yang, Nano Lett. 4 (2004) 2227.
[21] S.T. He, Y.L. Liu, H. Maeda, J. Nanopart. Res. 10 (2008) 209.
[22] R. Baber, L. Mazzei, N.T.K. Thanh, A. Gavriilidis, RSC Adv. 5 (2015) 95585.
[23] C. Wang, J. Li, S. Sun, X. Li, G. Wu, Y. Wang, F. Xie, Y. Huang, RSC Adv. 6 (2016)
14016.
[24] J. Siegel, O. Kvítek, P. Ulbrich, Z. Kolská, P. Slepi9 cka, V. Švor9
cík, Mater. Lett. 89
(2012) 47.
[25] Z. Wang, C. Xu, M. Zhao, C. Zhao, RSC Adv. 4 (2014) 47021.
[26] M.R. Dousti, R.J. Amjad, J. Nanophotonics 9 (2015) 093068.
[27] A. Shahzad, W.-S. Kim, T. Yu, RSC Adv. 5 (2015) 28652.
[28] Z.B. Stone, H.A. Stone, Phys. Fluids 17 (2005) 063103.
[29] M.R. Bringer, C.J. Gerdts, H. Song, J.D. Tice, R.F. Ismagilov, Philos. Trans. R. Soc. A
362 (2004) 1087.
[30] N. Lorber, F. Sarrazin, P. Guillot, P. Panizza, A. Colin, B. Pavageau, C. Hany, P.
Maestro, S. Marre, T. Delclos, C. Aymonier, P. Subra, L. Prat, C. Gourdon, E.
Mignard, Lab Chip 11 (2011) 779.
[31] Y. Li, R.K. Reddy, C.S.S.R. Kumar, K. Nandakumar, Biomicrofluidics 8 (2014)
054125.
[32] A. Knauer, A. Thete, S. Li, H. Romanus, A. Csáki, W. Fritzsche, J.M. Köhler, Chem.
Eng. J. 166 (2011) 1164.
[33] Y. Song, J. Hormes, C.S.S.R. Kumar, Small 4 (2008) 698.
[34] N. Cathcart, A.J. Frank, V. Kitaev, Chem. Commun. (2009) 7170.
[35] K. Dongjo, J. Sunho, M. Jooho, Nanotechnology 17 (2006) 4019.
[36] M. Chen, Y.-G. Feng, X. Wang, T.-C. Li, J.-Y. Zhang, D.-J. Qian, Langmuir 23 (2007)
5296.
[37] Z. Liu, Y. Wang, Y. Zu, Y. Fu, N. Li, N. Guo, R. Liu, Y. Zhang, Mater. Sci. Eng. C 42
(2014) 31.
[38] D.L. Van Hyning, W.G. Klemperer, C.F. Zukoski, Langmuir 17 (2001) 3120.
[39] N.T.K. Thanh, N. Maclean, S. Mahiddine, Chem. Rev. 114 (2014) 7610.
[40] T. Pedro, M. María del Puerto, V.-V. Sabino, G.-C. Teresita, J.S. Carlos, J. Phys. D:
Appl. Phys. 36 (2003) R182.
[41] S. Agnihotri, S. Mukherji, S. Mukherji, RSC Adv. 4 (2014) 3974.
[42] S. Sharma, R.A. Maurya, K.-I. Min, G.-Y. Jeong, D.-P. Kim, Angew Chem. Int. Ed.
52 (2013) 7564.
[43] Y. Wang, X. Zhang, A. Wang, X. Li, G. Wang, L. Zhao, Chem. Eng. J. 235 (2014) 191.