1

COMSOL Assistance for the Determination of Pressure Drops in

Complex Microfluidic Channels

J. Berthier
*
, R. Renaudot , P. Dalle, G. Blanco-Gomez, F. Rivera, V. Agache and P. Caillat.
CEA-LETI-Minatec, Department of Biotechnology
*Corresponding author: CEA, 17 avenue des Martyrs, 38054, Grenoble, France, jean.berthier@cea.fr



Abstract:

With the current trend towards always more
complexity associated to more functionalities in
biotechnological systems, it is required to know
with accuracy the pressure drop in the circuitry of
microfluidic systems. In general, a full three-
dimensional calculation is not tractable due to the
limited capacity of the computers. However,
computational models can help to produce
pressure drop correlations. In this work, we use
COMSOL to contribute to the determination of
pressure drops in different types of geometry,
typical of biochips, like rectangular and pillared
channels, and for different liquids, including non-
Newtonian biologic liquids. We show that the
numerical results agree with the theoretical
resultswhen they existand investigate the
potentialities and limits of the 2D-Helle-Shaw
formulation.

Keywords: Pressure-drop, posted arrays, pillar,
non-Newtonian fluid

1. Introduction

In this work, the laminar pressure drops in
microchannels have been investigated for three
cases: first, in rectangular channels for which
analytical approximate solutions exist [1,2,3]. It is
shown here that the 3D-COMSOL numerical
results reproduce quite well the pressure drop
obtained by analytical models. On the other hand,
the 2D-Helle-Shaw (noted 2D-HS) formulation is
accurate under the condition that the channel
depth d is small compared to its width w [2,3].
Indeed, the 2D-HS formulation

( ) U d U P U U
r r r r
2
12 . + = , (1)

where and are respectively the density and
visocity of the fluid, supposes a vertical parabolic
profile, which is exact for an aspect ratio smaller
than 1/3. In (1), P is the pressure, U the velocity,
the liquid density and the liquid viscosity.
Second, we investigate the pressure drop in
pillared channels. We indicate the domain where
the 2D-HS is accurate and derive a scaling law in
this domain. Finally, we investigate the case of
non-Newtonian liquids flowing in cylindrical and
rectangular channels. The COMSOL results agree
with the Rabinowitsch-Mooney model for a
cylindrical duct and with Kozicki and Muzyckha
models for rectangular channels [4,5]. A
simplified expression is deduced from the
COMSOL approach for square channels..

2. Pressure drop in rectangular channels

Flow channels in microsystems are usually
rectangular. This is due to the microfabrication
process. Pressure drops in such channels have
been largely documented [1,2,3]. The most used
formula to calculate the laminar pressure drop in a
rectangular microchannel of aspect
ratio ( ) w d d w , min = where d and w are the
two dimensions of the cross sectionis the
expression [2,3]

Q R P = , (2)

with

( ) ) ( ) , min( 4
2 2
q d w d w L R = ,

where the function q is the form factor given by

( ) ( ) 2 tanh 64 3 1 ) (
5
= q .

A good agreement with the theoretical formula is
obtained by a 3D calculation with COMSOL. A
good agreement is also obtained by using a 2D
Helle-Shaw calculation when the aspect ratio is
less than 1/3 [1,2]. For larger aspect ratios (1/3 to
1) the agreement is a little less satisfactory, but
this method still yields an approximation of the
pressure drop (fig.1). In a typical case of a channel
of width w=100 m, length L=400 m and flow
rate Q=1 l/mn, the analytical and 3D-COMSOL
Excerpt from the Proceedings of the COMSOL Conference 2010 Paris
2
pressure profiles are nearly indiscernible for any
aspect ratio, whereas the 2D-HS model is adequate
for aspect ratios less than 1/3 approximately:
relative errors of 2/
oo
, 3% and 5% are
respectively found for aspect ratios of 2/5, and
1. Note that the pressure drop is much larger for a
small aspect ratio channel under the same flow
rate conditions.


Figure 1. Comparison of the pressure profile in a
rectangular channel between analytical expression
(red squares), 3D-COMSOL (continuous blue line with
diamonds) and 2D-HS-COMSOL (continuous green
line with circles) formulations, for three different aspect
ratios:


3. Pressure drop in pillared channel

Pillared channels are commonly used in
microfluidic systems. Pillars have two main
functions: first, they can be used as additional
active surface for performing heterogeneous wall
biochemical reactions [6]; they provide a large
surface over volume ratio that promotes the
contact or capture of targets on the functionalized
pillars. The second use of pillars (or posts) is
mechanical: micropillars (even nano-pillars) are
used to facilitate the direct bonding process of the
cover plate that seals the microsystem; this is
especially the case of extremely small channels, at
the limit of the nanoscales. In such a case, micro-
pillar tops bring additional contact for the cover
plate and limit the free suspended area [7,8]
(fig.2).


Fig.2. SEM image of the cross- section of a pillared
microchannel, showing the thin cover plate sealing the
microsystem [7] (photo courtesy V. Agache).
Upper cover
Inlet flow
Outlet flow
Gap g
Height h
Diameter
Spacing w

Fig.3. Model for the flow calculation in a slice of
pillared channel.

Many parameters are associated with a pillared
geometry: pillar height (h), gaps (g along the flow
direction and w perpendicular to it), the pillar
diameter , the length L and width W of the outer
boundaries (fig.3). Let us assume that the global
scales W and L are much larger than the local
scales w and g. In a recent publication, Srivastava
et al. have numerically investigated with
COMSOL the case where the spacing is
homogeneousi.e. w=g and the aspect ratio h/w
larger than 1 [9]. In this work we focus on smaller
aspect ratios [ ] 1 , 1 . 0 w h , and we take into
account non homogeneous spacing, i.e. w g.

The numerical approach is straightforward: the
Navier-Stokes equation is used with the standard
boundary conditions (specified inlet velocities and
zero pressure at the outlet). The mesh number is
3
the largest possible taken into account the
computer memory, and the convergence of the
solution with the mesh size has been checked.

First, it is numerically observed that, in the
parametric domain defined by

<<
<<
< <

=
L g
W w
w
w g
w h
2 5 . 0
2 5 . 0
1
,

and shown in figure 4, the 2D-HS model
developed for rectangular cross section is valid. It
implicitly means that the vertical velocity profile
is approximately quadratic, even when the axial
flow is modified by the presence of pillars.
Besides, in the domain , the COMSOL approach
leads to the relation


1 . 0 2 2
1 . 0
130
g w h
Q
x
P

(3)

Figures 5, 6 and 7 show the variation of
x P respectively with 1/h
2
, 1/w
2
and 1/g
0.1
.
Note that W and L do not appear in (3) because
they are assumed to be much larger than w and g.
Note also that it is not needed to investigate the
variation of x P with which would be very
lengthybecause the exponent of is directly
obtained by a dimensional analysis of (3).

h/w
w/
Ref [9]
1
10
0.1
1
2
10
Helle-Shaw 2D formulation
This study
Fig.4. Domain of validity of the present work and [9].
h = 10, 20 m
g = 5, 10 m

Fig.5. Pressure gradient as a function of the height of
the channel h: the dots correspond to COMSOL (3D and
HS) calculations and the continuous line to the power
law 1/h
2
. Note that the HS formulation is very close to
the full 3D model.

h = 10 m
g =10 m
=10 m

Fig.6. Pressure gradient as a function of the axial
spacing w: the dots correspond to COMSOL (3D and
HS) calculations and the continuous line to the power
law 1/w
2
.


In conclusion, for aspect ratios smaller than 1, the
Helle-Shaw model (1) correctly predicts the
pressure drop in the domain . Moreover,
relation (3) is fast and convenient for the
prediction of the pressure drop in .

4
w = 10 m
h = 10 m
= 10 m
Fig.7. Pressure gradient as a function of the gap: dots
correspond to COMSOL (3D and HS) calculations and
the continuous line to the power law 1/g
0.1
.


4. Pressure drop of non-Newtonian liquids
in microchannels

In modern biotechnology, viscoelastic fluids like
whole blood or alginates, xanthan, etc. are
increasingly used. This is for example the case of
cell encapsulation in alginates (Fig.8). However,
pressure drop determination of non-Newtonian
fluid flows remains a challenge. Indeed, for a
Newtonian fluid, the force balance on a control
volume of a rectangular channel of width w, depth
d and wall surface S, can be expressed as

=
S
w
ds
d w
P
1
(4)

where
w
is the wall friction. For a 2D case, and a
Poiseuille flow, the wall friction is simply given
by

d
U
w

6
= (5)

where is the viscosity and U the average
velocity. Substitution of (5) in (4) yields

2
12
d
U L
P

= (6)

where L is the length of the control volume.

Fig.8. Encapsulation of cells in visco-elastic alginates
(photo courtesy P. Dalle).


However, in the case of a non-Newtonian fluid,
equation (4) becomes a complicated integral

( )

=
S
w w
dz dy dx
d w
P & &
1
(7)

where
w
& is the wall shear rate. The only case for
which a closed form formulation exists is that of a
cylindrical duct in which a power law fluid
(Ostwald fluid) circulates. It is recalled that the
viscosity of a power law fluid has the form

1
=
n
K & (8)

where K and n are constants, and the friction is
expressed by

n
K & & = = (9)

Note that, even if the fluid is not exactly an
Ostwald fluid, its viscosity can often be
approximated by a power law. For example, in the
case of alginateswidely used in biotechnology
and biologyit has been shown that they obey a
Carreau-Yasuda relation [10]. A power law
approximation can be found by setting K=0.5 and
n=0.8 (Fig.9).

In such a case, the solution has been formally
given by Rabinowitsch and Mooney [4]

n
n
n
RM
w
U
n
n
w
K L
P
|
|

\
|
|

\
| +
=
+
1 3 2
) 2 (
(10)

where K and n are the constant of the power law
fluid. Hence, the hydraulic resistance is

1
3
) 2 (
1 3 2

+
|
|

\
|
|

\
| +
=
n n
n
RM
w
U
n
n
d w
K L
R
(11)
5
Ostwald relation
Carreau-Yasuda relation
Fig.9. Comparison between the nearly exact Carreau-
Yasuda relation for the viscosity and a simple power
law (Ostawald relation).


Relation (11) shows that the hydraulic resistance
is not a geometrical constant, and depends on the
flow velocity. This is a drastic difference between
Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids that has
important consequences on microfluidic networks
[11]. Inspired by the cylindrical approach,
approximated relations have been found for
rectangular channels [5,12-14], leading to the
expression

n
n
n
n
U c
n
c
w
L K
P |

\
|
+ =
+
+
2
1
1
2 3
2
(12)

where the geometric coefficient c
1
and c
2
are given
in appendix 1. The hydraulic resistance of a
rectangular channel is then


1
2
1
3
2 3
2

+
|
|

\
|
|

\
|
+ =
n
n
n
w
U
c
n
c
d w
L K
R
. (13)

Again, it is observed that the hydraulic resistance
depends on the flow conditions.

We have numerically investigated the case of a
square channel using different power law
varying K and n in (8)and different flow rates
with the COMSOL numerical software. It appears
that the wall friction collapses in all the considered
cases on the same quadratic law, even if the
velocity profile is not quadratic in the central part
of the channel (Fig.10). The wall shear rate is
given by the relation

Fig.10. Reduced wall shear rates obtained using
COMSOL and second order polynomial fit.


(
(

\
|

+
=
k
a
y
a
k
k
k
U y 1
1
2 . 1 ) (
2
&
. (14)

where k =2. Hence, the pressure drop is then given
by the relation

d
w
U
w
K L
P
n
n

+
(

=
2
0
1 2
sin 8 . 10
4
(15)

The advantage of this latter formulation over (12)
is that no geometrical coefficient is needed. The
hydraulic resistance can be cast under the form

d
w
U
d w
K L
R
n
n

=
2
0
1 2
1
3
sin 8 . 10
4
(16)

Figure 11 shows a comparison between the
literature results (Kozicki et al. Muzychka et al.
and Miller), correlation (14) deduced from
COMSOL calculations and COMSOL 3D
calculation for a 100 m channel.


5. Conclusion

If the aspect ratio of a rectangular micro-channel
is small enough, the 2D-Helle-Shaw approach is
valid. It is less accurate for aspect ratios slightly
above 1.


6
Kozicki , Muzyckha , Miller
COMSOL
Present work

Fig.10. Non-Newtonian pressure profiles in a 100 m x
100 m square channel of length L= 500 m.


It is also valid for pillared channels of relatively
small aspect ratios. Using a similar numerical
approach as that of [9], a scaling law for the
pressure drop has been derived. This scaling law,
valid for small aspect ratios, differs considerably
from that of [9], valid for high aspect ratios. A
universal law is still to be found.

Non-Newtonian flows are complex and only the
case of Ostwald fluids in cylindrical or rectangular
channels has been investigated in the literature.
The COMSOL numerical approach agrees with
the published results, and has been used to derive
a pressure drop correlation for a square channel,
requiring no geometrical coefficients.


6. References


1. M. Bahrami, M. M. Yovanovich, J. R. Culham,
Pressure drop of fully-developed, laminar flow in
microchannels of arbitrary cross section,
Proceedings of ICMM 2005, 3rd International
Conference on Microchannels and Minichannels,
June 13-15, 2005, Toronto, Ontario, Canada,
2005.
2. H. Bruus. Theoretical microfluidics. Oxford
Master Series in Condensed Matter Physics, 2008.
3. J. Berthier, P. Silberzan. Microfluidics for
Biotechnology. Second Edition, Artech House,
2010.
4. J.F. Steffe. Rheological methods in food process
engineering. Second Edition, Freeman Press,
1982.
5. Y.S. Muzychka, J.F. Edge, Laminar non-
Newtonian fluid flow in non-circular ducts and
microchannels, J. Fluid Engineering, 130, n11, p.
111-201, 2008.
6. S.R.A. de Loos, J. van der Schaaf, M.H.J.M. de
Croon, T.A. Nijhuis, R.M. Tiggelaar, H.G.E.
Gardeniers and J.C. Schouten, Three-Phase Mass
Transfer in Pillared Micro Channels, Proceedings
of the 10th International Conference on
Microreaction Technology, IMRET 2008, New
Orleans, 1-4 April, 2008.
7. V. Agache, Dispositif pour la dtection
gravimtrique de particules en milieu fluide,
comprenant un oscillateur travers par une veine
fluidique, procd de ralisation et mthode de
mise en uvre du dispositif, International patent
WO/2009/141516 26/11/2009.
8. Pyung-Soo Lee, Junghyun Lee, Nayoung Shin,
Kun-Hong Lee, Dongkyu Lee, Sangmin Jeon,
Dukhyun Choi, Woonbong Hwang, and Hyunchul
Park. Microcantilevers with Nanochannels. Adv.
Mater. 2008, 20, 17321737.
9. N. Srivastava, C. Din, A. Judson, N.C.
MacDonald, C.D. Meinhart, A unified scaling
model for flow through a lattice of
microfabricated posts, Lab Chip, 10, 1148-1152,
2010.
10. J. Berthier, S. Le Vot, P. Tiquet, N. David, D.
Lauro, P.Y. Benhamou, F. Rivera. Highly viscous
fluids in pressure actuated flow focusing devices,
Sensors and Actuators A 158 (2010) 140148.
11. J. Berthier, S. Le Vot, P. Tiquet, F. Rivera, P.
Caillat, On the influence of non-Newtonian fluids
on microsystems for biotechnology. Proceedings
of the 2009 Nanotech-NSTI Conference, 3-7 May
2009, Houston, USA.
12. W. Kosicki, C.H. Chou, C. Tiu, Non-
Newtonian Flow in Ducts of Arbitrary Cross-
sectional Shape, Chemical Engineering Science,
21 (1966), pp. 665679.
13. C. Miller, Predicting non-Newtonian flow
behaviour in ducts of unusual cross section, Ind.
Eng. Chem. Fundam. 11 (1972), pp. 534628.
14. F. Delplace, J.C. Leuliet, Generalized
Reynolds number for the flow of power law fluids
in cylindrical ducts of arbitrary cross-section.
Chem.Eng. Journal,.56, (1995),pp.33-37.


7
Appendix 1: Kozicki expression for the
pressure drop.

First, a non-dimensional friction is defined by
( )
n n
n
A wall
c
n
c
|
|

\
| +
|

\
|
+ =

1 2
2 *
2
1
,
, (A.1)

where = min(w/d,d/w) is the aspect ratio. It is
recalled that for square channels =1. The
geometrical constant c
1
and c
2
are then

( )
( )
1
5
2
2
3
2
1
2
tanh 192
1 1 2
3
2
cosh
32
1 1 2
1
c c
c

|
|
|
|
|

\
|
|
|

\
|
+
=
|
|
|
|
|

\
|
|
|

\
|
+
=

(A.2)





























Then, the dimensional friction is

( )
( )
( )
n
n
n
n
n
n
n
A wall
A wall
A
U K
c
n
c
A
U K
|
|

\
| +
|

\
|
+ =
=

1 2
2
*
2
1
,
,
(A.3)


Finally the pressure drop is

n
n
n
n
U c
n
c
w
L K
P |

\
|
+
+
+
2
1
1
2 3
2
(A.4)