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A droplet robotic system enabled by electret-induced polarization on droplet

Author

Listed:
  • Ruotong Zhang

    (The University of Hong Kong)

  • Chengzhi Zhang

    (The University of Hong Kong
    Southern University of Science and Technology)

  • Xiaoxue Fan

    (The University of Hong Kong)

  • Christina C. K. Au Yeung

    (The University of Hong Kong
    Hong Kong Science Park)

  • Huiyanchen Li

    (Hong Kong Science Park)

  • Haisong Lin

    (The University of Hong Kong
    Hong Kong Science Park)

  • Ho Cheung Shum

    (The University of Hong Kong
    Hong Kong Science Park)

Abstract

Robotics for scientific research are evolving from grasping macro-scale solid materials to directly actuating micro-scale liquid samples. However, current liquid actuation mechanisms often restrict operable liquid types or compromise the activity of biochemical samples by introducing interfering mediums. Here, we propose a robotic liquid handling system enabled by a novel droplet actuation mechanism, termed electret-induced polarization on droplet (EPD). EPD enables all-liquid actuation in principle and experimentally exhibits generality for actuating various inorganic/organic liquids with relative permittivity ranging from 2.25 to 84.2 and volume from 500 nL to 1 mL. Moreover, EPD is capable of actuating various biochemical samples without compromising their activities, including various body fluids, living cells, and proteins. A robotic system is also coupled with the EPD mechanism to enable full automation. EPD’s high adaptability with liquid types and biochemical samples thus promotes the automation of liquid-based scientific experiments across multiple disciplines.

Suggested Citation

  • Ruotong Zhang & Chengzhi Zhang & Xiaoxue Fan & Christina C. K. Au Yeung & Huiyanchen Li & Haisong Lin & Ho Cheung Shum, 2024. "A droplet robotic system enabled by electret-induced polarization on droplet," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-16, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-50520-9
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50520-9
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    Cited by:

    1. Jianfeng Sun & Qing Zhao & Zeng Mo & Jie Chen & Hengyu Guo & Lingjun Zhang, 2025. "Self-powered droplet manipulation for full human-droplet interaction in multiple mediums," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-9, December.

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