Multiscale Porosity Microfluidics to Study Bacterial Transport in Heterogeneous Chemical Landscapes

• DOI: 10.1002/advs.202310121
• Publication Date: 2024-03-06T14:04:41Z
• Authors: M. Mehdi Salek; Francesco Carrara; Jiande Zhou; Roman Stocker; Joaquin Jimenez‐M...
• Keywords: Polydimethylsiloxane; Nanometre

Abstract Microfluidic models are proving to be powerful systems study fundamental processes in porous media, due their ability replicate topologically complex environments while allowing detailed, quantitative observations at the pore scale. Yet, media such as living tissues, geological substrates, or industrial typically display a porosity that spans multiple scales, most microfluidic date limited single small range of sizes. Here, novel system with multiscale is presented. By embedding polyacrylamide (PAAm) hydrogel structures through in‐situ photopolymerization landscape microfabricated polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) pillars varying spacing, micromodels spanning several orders magnitude, from nanometers millimeters created. Experiments conducted different patterns demonstrate potential this approach characterize and ubiquitous biological geochemical transport media. Accounting for allows studies resulting heterogeneous fluid flow concentration fields transported chemicals, well behaviors associated heterogeneity, bacterial chemotaxis. This brings laboratory step closer natural counterparts environment, industry, medicine.