Moderate Reynolds Number Flow through Microchannels Filled With Arrays of Micro-Cylinders

Moderate Reynolds number flow pressure drop of ordered arrays of cylinders embedded inside microchannels is studied experimentally and analytically. The array of microcylinders is modeled as a porous medium embedded inside the channel. The pressure drop is expressed as a function of the involved geometrical parameters such as micro-cylinder diameter, spacing between adjacent cylinders, channel height, and its width. To verify the developed models, 15 silicon/glass samples are fabricated using the Deep Reactive Ion Etching (DRIE) technique. Pressure drop measurements are performed over a wide range of nitrogen flow rates spanning from 0.1 sccm to 50 sccm (velocity range of 0.004 m/s to 2 m/s). The experimental data shows a parabolic relationship between the pressure drop and the volumetric flow rate in moderate Reynolds number flow. In addition, the proposed model captures the experimental data.