@article{95205e35e9d44e9c929f15e1a6aac998,
title = "Hydrophilic modification of SLA 3D printed droplet generators by photochemical grafting",
abstract = "Few droplet generators manufactured using desktop stereolithography 3D printers have been reported in the literature. Moreover, 3D printed microfluidic chips are typically hydrophobic, limiting their application to water in oil droplets. Herein, we present designs for concentric and planar 3D printed microfluidic devices suitable for making polymeric microparticles using an off-the-shelf commercial stereolithography printer and resin. The devices consist of a microscope slide, binder clips, and printed components. Channels were modified by an ultraviolet grafting of methacrylic acid to the surface of chips, yielding a hydrophilic coating without modification to the bulk polymer. The water contact angle decreased from 97.0° to 25.4° after grafting. The presence of the coating was confirmed by microscopy and spectroscopy techniques. Polystyrene microparticles in the <100 μm size range were generated with varying molecular weights using the described microfluidic chips. Our work provides a facile method to construct droplet generators from commercial stereolithography printers and resins, and a rapid surface modification technique that has been under-utilized in 3D printed microfluidics. A wide range of microfluidic devices for other applications can be engineered using the methods described.",
author = "Bacha, {Tristan W.} and Manuguerra, {Dylan C.} and Marano, {Robert A.} and Stanzione, {Joseph F.}",
note = "Funding Information: We would like to acknowledge financial support of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory through Cooperative Agreement W911NF-19-2-0152. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory or the U.S. government. The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints for Government purposes notwithstanding any copyright notation herein. The authors are grateful to Shankar Kharal and Anjana Khanal of the Haase Research Group for discussions on contact angle measurements and usage of their instrument. Funding Information: We would like to acknowledge nancial support of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory through Cooperative Agreement W911NF-19-2-0152. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory or the U.S. government. The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints for Government purposes notwithstanding any copyright notation herein. The authors are grateful to Shankar Kharal and Anjana Khanal of the Haase Research Group for discussions on contact angle measurements and usage of their instrument. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Royal Society of Chemistry 2021.",
year = "2021",
month = jun,
day = "18",
doi = "10.1039/d1ra03057d",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "11",
pages = "21745--21753",
journal = "RSC Advances",
issn = "2046-2069",
publisher = "Royal Society of Chemistry",
number = "35",
}