The Polymer Society of Korea

Abstract

Nanoprecipitation is a well-established technique that enables the encapsulation of therapeutic agents into polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) through simple and rapid mixing processes. Microfluidic-based mixing has recently attracted significant attention as an effective strategy for producing small and highly uniform NPs, which are difficult to achieve using conventional bulk mixing methods. To enhance mixing performance in microfluidic systems, a variety of channel geometries have been developed. Among these, Tesla-type structures have demonstrated effective fluid mixing capabilities; however, the integration of three-dimensional (3D) obstructions within Tesla structures has not yet been reported. In this study, we propose a 3D microfluidic Tesla mixer designed to enhance mixing efficiency by incorporating 3D obstructions, namely triangular prisms, cylinders, and cones, into Tesla structures fabricated via 3D printing