Simulation and Experimental Study of a Synthetic Jet Valveless Pump

A valveless microfluidic pump using a lead zirconate titanate (PZT) diaphragm actuated synthetic jet is developed and fabricated. For this present design, a valveless pump structure is developed in which the pump chamber is sealed on one side and connected to an emitting nozzle at another side. The design is simulated using the multiphysics approach and then successfully investigated with a prototype produced by a low-cost additive fabrication technique. The device's parameters, including the liquid pumping characteristics and the size of the PZT membrane, are optimized based on its desired performance. The developed device can be applied over a wide range of applications from micromixing to fluidic controlling.