Design and Development of Piezoelectric Composite-Based Micropump

Valveless micropumps are extensively used in micro fluidic systems, including health care monitoring and diagnostic devices, computer devices, and so on, as it forms the critical component in the microsystem for precise and controlled fluid handling. This paper proposes the design and development of a novel, significantly low cost, planar micropump with piezoelectric polymer composite, consisting of lead zirconate titanate and polyvinylidene fluoride, for actuation. The novelty lies in the synthesis and use of the piezoelectric polymer composite as the actuating mechanism and the diffuser/nozzle design around the line of appreciable stall to achieve maximum flow rate for the given boundary conditions. The parametric study on the micropump geometry, including, chamber depth and diameter as well as diffuser/nozzle was carried out by using numerical simulations in COMSOL multiphysics, to analyze the fluid flow rate. The response of piezoelectric polymer to the applied sinusoidal voltage causes flow rectification in the micropump. An aspect ratio (diffuser length/diffuser width) of 15 produces maximum fluid flow rate. The designed micropump can achieve maximum fluid flow rate at low applied voltage and frequency of operation.