3D printed pump based on vibrating blades to actively manipulate fluid

Abstract

This paper represents a novel working mechanism using vibrating blades to manipulate fluid based on 3D printing technology. A Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulation has been established to research on working mechanism and driving ability of the vibrating blades-driven pump. The rising popular 3D printing technology is introduced to manufacture the pump, which decreases research time and cost drastically. Herein, a flat oscillating micromotor with extremely low working voltage and power is adopted to act as a random vibration source. The dyeing experiment shows the pump ability of directionally actuating fluid utilizing Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) 3D printer. A testing system in weighing method is used to test flow rate of different pumps with various structures, receiving a maximum flux of 107.8 ml/min. The pump is characterized by applying structures into pump to actively control fluid. Furthermore, a micropump is printed by a high-resolution 3D printer, which shows potential applications of the 3D-printed vibrating blades-driven pump in manipulating microfluid.