Abstract: Disclosed is a method to control and manipulate floating water droplets. More particularly, disclosed are the self-assembly and pattern formation of electrically charged water droplets that are floating at an oil-gas interface. Also shown is that the assembly occurs because of electrostatic interactions between the drops. It is shown that the depth of the oil bath plays a significant role in the distance between the drops assembled at the interface. The relevance of the type of the boundary containing the entire system is highlighted by showing that even drops with a net zero electric charge can self-assemble under certain conditions. Furthermore, disclosed are ways to control the motion and the assembly of the drops at an interface.

Abstract: Systems and methods for fibrous material manufacturing are provided. The methods include dispensing a first stream of a solution (that includes a crosslinkable material) from first nozzle(s) into a bath containing a liquid (that includes a first material). The first nozzle(s) are submerged in the liquid. The methods include dispensing a second stream from second nozzle(s) also submerged in the liquid. The second stream(s) are configured to elongate and thin the first stream(s). The second stream contain a liquid. The liquid includes a second material, which may be the same, or may be different, form the first material. The methods include forming a fibrous material by crosslinking the crosslinkable material in the first stream (e.g., using a light source to cross-link a photo-crosslinkable material in the stream).

Abstract: Methods of inducing or controlling particle motion in suspensions and colloids are described. In one aspect, a method of inducing particle motion in a suspension comprises contacting the suspension with a gas phase to establish at least one interface between the gas phase and continuous phase of the suspension. One or more gases of the gas phase are transferred across the interface to provide a solute gradient in the continuous phase, the solute gradient inducing motion of the suspended particles.

Abstract: Provided are a vehicle body assembling method and a vehicle body assembling apparatus which allow a simple configuration in the vicinity of the connecting portion between an upper jig and a lower jig and allow an increase in the efficiency of assembling work (welding work

Abstract: The subject invention pertains to a new method for measuring the elastic properties of microfibers by rope-coiling. Rope-coiling refers to the buckling of a slender elastic fiber caused by axial compression. A continuous flow microfluidic method enables the high-throughput measurement of the elasticity of microfibers by rope-coiling, where sample loading and unloading are not needed between consecutive measurements. In certain embodiments the coiling radius can be directly proportional to the elastic modulus of the fiber, facilitating calibration to measure fiber elasticity for high-throughput applications. Throughput can be thousands of times higher than that of a tensile tester, making possible an in situ, on-line measurement in a microfluidic production line, which couples the making of microfibers and the measurement of elasticity on the same line. The new method can also measure certain fibers with local variations in elasticity.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a multi-purpose aerosol platform capable of producing and delivery of submicron and nano structured materials for pharmaceutical, biomedical and environmental applications. Depending on the application, active chemical and biological materials may be processed from liquid dispersions into droplets and/or particle formulations. The disclosed system uses moderate gas pressures to atomize liquids into submicron-size droplets that are 10-1000 times smaller in diameter than commercial and research systems. This allows much gentler and rapid droplet-to-particle conversion, applying much smaller physical and chemical stresses on the processed materials than conventional techniques like spray drying, spray coating, spray freeze drying and other technologies. For example, the disclosed system can be used for an ultra-fine nebulization and delivery of viscous therapeutic oils including oils of medical cannabis, for which conventional nebulization systems either fail or became ineffective.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a simple method for generation of high-throughput aerosols of monodisperse micro-shell particles. To create the aerosol, small nozzles are employed blowing slightly compressed air on a thin liquid film. This allows one to generate bubble aerosols consisting of particles having a thin liquid shell surrounding a gas core, which are suspended in a carrier gas flow or environment. The diameter of the created liquid shells is uniform and scales with the inner diameter of the blowing nozzle, enabling control on the size of the produced monodispersed aerosol and formation of particles between few microns to several hundred of microns in outer diameter. The process throughput is very high, reaching several thousands of particles with liquid micro-shells per second for one blowing nozzle.

Abstract: Methods described herein, in some embodiments, permit extraction of particle structural and/or surface charge data from gradient induced particle motion in channels. In one aspect, a method of manipulating particle motion comprises introducing a fluid into a channel, the fluid comprising particles, and driving particle accumulation to a preselected location in the channel by setting advective velocity of the fluid to offset diffusiophoretic mobility of the particles at the preselected location.

Abstract: Methods described herein, in some embodiments, permit extraction of particle structural and/or surface charge data from gradient induced particle motion in channels. In one aspect, a method of manipulating particle motion comprises introducing a fluid into a channel, the fluid comprising particles, and driving particle accumulation to a preselected location in the channel by setting advective velocity of the fluid to offset diffusiophoretic mobility of the particles at the preselected location.

Abstract: Disclosed is a process for separating suspended particles based on size. When confined in a tube, a bubble moves relative to the liquid as a small fraction of the liquid leaks backwards through a very thin gap between the bubble and the internal wall of the tube. The lubricating film formed around the bubble can be fine-tuned by simply changing the average flow speed. With this thin film of liquid, the confined air bubble can be used to separate particles in, for example, poly-disperse microspheres suspensions. As the bubble passes through the suspension, only particles smaller than the liquid gap thickness can leak through the gap towards the back of the bubble, resulting a filtered particle suspension containing only small particles at the back of the bubble. Compared to the traditional methods, this particle separation process is easy to perform, and is flexible in filtering different suspensions with one set-up.

Abstract: Methods of inducing or controlling particle motion in suspensions and colloids are described. In one aspect, a method of inducing particle motion in a suspension comprises contacting the suspension with a gas phase to establish at least one interface between the gas phase and continuous phase of the suspension. One or more gases of the gas phase are transferred across the interface to provide a solute gradient in the continuous phase, the solute gradient inducing motion of the suspended particles.

Abstract: The invention relates to compositions comprising Quorum-Sensing (QS) modulating molecules attached to a surface via a linker. This QS modulator attached surface can then be used to modulate QS, biofilm production, biofilm streamer production and/or virulence factor production. The length of the linker that attaches the QS modulating molecule to the surface as well as the surface coverage density impact QS modulation on surfaces. These QS modulator attached surfaces can be used to treat areas known to contain human pathogens notorious for causing hospital-acquired infections as well as fatal infections that occur outside of health care settings. Other surfaces that can be coated according to embodiments of the invention include abiotic materials, such as intravenous catheters, implants, medical devices, and cooling towers. Preferred microorganisms that can be treated with the compositions of the invention include, but are not limited to S. aureus and/or P. aeruginosa.

Abstract: Methods of inducing or controlling particle motion in suspensions and colloids are described. In one aspect, a method of inducing particle motion in a suspension comprises contacting the suspension with a gas phase to establish at least one interface between the gas phase and continuous phase of the suspension. One or more gases of the gas phase are transferred across the interface to provide a solute gradient in the continuous phase, the solute gradient inducing motion of the suspended particles.

Abstract: Methods described herein, in some embodiments, permit extraction of particle structural and/or surface charge data from gradient induced particle motion in channels. In one aspect, a method of manipulating particle motion comprises introducing a fluid into a channel, the fluid comprising particles, and driving particle accumulation to a preselected location in the channel by setting advective velocity of the fluid to offset diffusiophoretic mobility of the particles at the preselected location.

Abstract: Emulsion breaking and phase separation is achieved by droplet adhesion. An emulsion breaking device includes a channel having distinct adjacent zones with distinctly different surface wettability characteristics, namely, solvophilic and solvophobic surfaces. The device is positioned such that the upstream portion of the device is configured to be wetted by the continuous phase of the emulsion, and the downstream portion of the device is configured to be wetted by the dispersed phase of the emulsion. As the emulsion flows from the upstream zone to the downstream zone, the change in surface wettability characteristics promotes adhesion of the dispersed phase as the dispersed phase wets the surface of the downstream portion of the channel, which results in breaking of the emulsion. Subsequent collection of the broken emulsion in a collection vessel results in separation of the disparate phases to facilitate their recapture and recycling.

Abstract: Disclosed is a separation device and a method for separating charged particles from a liquid stream. The separation is effected by establishing an ion concentration gradient across the direction of the liquid stream by the introduction of a gas which when contacted with the liquid, in a reversible reaction, forms a soluble ionic species. A concentration gradient is maintained across the direction of the liquid stream which in turn induces separation of charged particles within the liquid stream due to the effect of diffusiophoresis. The device operates using little or no power, and dispenses with the need for filtration media or separation membranes. The device and method is adaptable to any of a number of separation processes, including biological separation processes, water purification and industrial processes.

Abstract: Methods described herein, in some embodiments, permit extraction of particle structural and/or surface charge data from gradient induced particle motion in channels. In one aspect, a method of manipulating particle motion comprises introducing a fluid into a channel, the fluid comprising particles, and driving particle accumulation to a preselected location in the channel by setting advective velocity of the fluid to offset diffusiophoretic mobility of the particles at the preselected location.

Abstract: Provided is a hydrogel. The hydrogel includes a liquid and a plurality of microfibers suspended in the liquid as an entangled network. The entangled network includes physically entangled microfibers that are mechanically interlocked.

Abstract: Disclosed is a process and device allowing for fast measurements of the physicochemical properties of amphiphiles (lipids, surfactants, soaps, . . . ). A Marangoni flow is created and characterized using amphiphiles to be characterized. The observed flow is characterized, and using the disclosed process, one can deduce from this measurement many important physicochemical parameters of the amphiphiles such as their critical micellar concentration. Compared to existing techniques, the disclosed process offers the advantage that it requires a single experiment to deduce the parameters, when other techniques (pendant drop method, conductometry, etc . . . ) require the measurement of a quantity (interfacial tension, conductometry) against a systematically varied parameter (amphiphile concentration, . . . ). The disclosed process and devices are ideal to characterize and/or screen rapidly amphiphiles molecules based on their interaction with a solvent.

Abstract: The invention includes microfluidic methods and devices that allow for the continuous production of microfibers with embedded droplets aligned along the length of the fiber at specific positions. The invention allows for formation of single or multiple emulsions within a fiber. The various phases comprised within the fiber can vary in terms of in terms of hydrophobic/hydrophilic character, solid/fluid, or gel crosslink density, which allows for the introduction of heterogeneous microenvironments within the fiber, each of which with distinct solubility characteristics, permeability, and mechanical properties. Various compounds and materials can be encapsulated in the different microcompartments of the fiber for storage and delivery applications, as well as to provide multifunctionality to the fiber structure.