Published Paper Details:

Dielectrophoresis (DEP) occurs due to the movement of particles in a non-uniform electric field, resulting from the continuous interaction between the particle dipole and the spatial gradient of the electric field. DEP is a commonly utilized technique for particle manipulation in microfluidic devices and is employed in the separation of microparticles such as malignant blood cells, DNA, and other nanoparticles. Besides DEP, other techniques, like centrifugation, are used for particle sorting. DEP is particularly advantageous for sorting blood cells due to its microscale manipulation capabilities and favorable scaling system. This work involves a computational analysis of the separation of blood components, primarily RBCs, WBCs, and platelets. The separation process is based on the properties of blood cells, including their significantly differing sizes and dielectric properties. Various studies and experiments have presented models with specific electrode shapes, inlets, and outlets to achieve cell separation. Modifying the shape and physical dimensions of the electrodes can enable cell separation at a low voltage, as particles are influenced by the electric potential applied to the electrodes and deflect within the channel medium. This study examines the effects of changes in shape, applied voltage, and physical dimensions using two model designs. A comparative analysis of these models with existing ones is conducted, leading to the development and analysis of an optimized design for efficient blood particle separation. The design, modeling, and simulations are performed using the Finite Element Method (FEM).