Bionic microchannels for step lifting transpiration

Abstract

Those various cross-sectional vessels in trees transfer water to as high as 100 meters, but the traditional fabrication methods limit the manufacturing of those vessels, resulting in the non-availability of those bionic microchannels. Herein, we fabricate those bionic microchannels with various cross-sections by employing projection micro-stereolithography (P µ SL) based 3D printing technique. The circumradius of bionic microchannels (pentagonal, square, triangle, and five-pointed star) can be as small as 100 μ m with precisely fabricated sharp corners. What’s more, those bionic microchannels demonstrate marvelous microfluidic performance with strong precursor effects enabled by their sharp corners. Most significantly, those special properties of our bionic microchannels enable them outstanding step lifting performance to transport water to tens of millimeters, though the water can only be transported to at most 20 mm for a single bionic microchannel. The mimicked transpiration based on the step lifting of water from bionic microchannels is also achieved. Those precisely fabricated, low-cost, various cross-sectional bionic microchannels promise applications as microfluidic chips, long-distance unpowered water transportation, step lifting, mimicked transpiration, and so on.

Keywords

• bionic microchannel
• microfluidics
• water transportation
• step lifting
• 3D printing