Gelatin-based microfluidics device with the feature sizes smaller than 100 µm for production of oil-in-water emulsions

Abstract

Hydrogel-based microfluidics offers the intrinsic hydrophilicity of the embossed microfluidic channels. The previous work on hydrogel-based microfluidics usually has limited access to small features. Here, we offer a solution to fabricate gelatin-based microfluidics device with the feature sizes smaller than 100 µm. The fabrication was straightforward, using gelatin and riboflavin solution, without requiring the chemical functionalization of gelatin towards gelatin methacrylate. The mechanical and thermal stability of gelatin was improved by exposing the gelatin–riboflavin mixture under blue light, which induced chemical crosslinking by photooxidation. The devices were stable enough to produce oil-in-water droplets and oil-in-oil-in-water double emulsions for demanded applications.