HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

HardwareX
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ohx

OMIS: The Open Millifluidic Inquiry System for small scale

chemical synthesis and analysis
R.J. LeSuer a,⇑, K.L. Osgood a, K.E. Stelnicki b, J.L. Mendez b
a
The College at Brockport, SUNY, Brockport, NY 14420, United States
b
Chicago State University, Chicago, IL 60628, United States

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: With the continued establishment of hacker-spaces and fab-labs hosted in academic
Received 21 June 2018 libraries, there is an increase in the availability of resources for designing scientific instru-
Received in revised form 23 July 2018 mentation in the undergraduate curriculum. Many available designs, however, may be too
Accepted 23 July 2018
complex to fabricate in teaching environments. Presented here is OMIS, the Open
Millifluidic Inquiry System, which is a platform for performing small-scale chemical syn-
thesis and analysis. OMIS consists of a 3D printed syringe pump, control hardware based
Keywords:
upon the Arduino microcontroller and 3D printed reaction vessels. The OMIS syringe pump
3D printed syringe pump
Arduino microcontroller
utilizes a low-power stepper motor which simplifies the instrument construction and
Lab on a chip allows for power to be supplied from batteries or the USB port of a computer. The simple
design of OMIS allows for the instrument to be fabricated in one day, including the time to
3D print components. The OMIS syringe pump is able to deliver fluids at rates between 60
and 300 lL/min, depending on syringe size, with a reproducibility of 3%. Several applica-
tions of OMIS are presented, including a demonstration of laminar flow in a 3D printed mil-
lifluidic chip, implementation of a low-volume flow-cell cuvette insert and the synthesis of
magnetite nanoparticles.
Ó 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC
BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

1. Hardware in context

As the miniaturization of instrumentation becomes more prevalent in industrial and academic chemistry environments
[1], it is becoming increasingly important to incorporate lab-on-a-chip applications into the undergraduate curriculum [2].
One barrier to broad implementation of device miniaturization in the classroom is the limited availability of inexpensive
fluid control systems. In 2014, the first open-source/open-hardware syringe pump was introduced [3]. The instrument
was created with flexibility and accessibility in mind by providing a parametric design and multiple configurations. Argu-
ably, the advent of consumer grade digital fabrication tools has initiated a renaissance in bespoke scientific instrumentation
design, where instrumentation becomes an initiator of investigation, allowing a user to have an idea and develop an instru-
ment that tests that idea [4]. For example, broad access to digital fabrication tools has allowed for lab-built devices for the
automation and multiplexing of DNA assembly [5] and multi-fluorescence imaging systems [6] at significantly reduced costs
without compromising data quality. Another important factor in open-source/hardware design is the ability to leverage
rapid prototyping in scientific endeavors. For example, when posed with a chemical synthesis step that required slow
reagent addition under anhydrous conditions, a custom dual syringe pump system was implemented using locally acquired
and manufactured resources [7].

⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: rlesuer@brockport.edu (R.J. LeSuer).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ohx.2018.e00038
2468-0672/Ó 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
2 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038

The original open source syringe pump design [3] uses NEMA 17 and NEMA 11 stepper motors which operate at 12 V and
draw sufficient current to warrant an external power supply. In order to accommodate portable and battery-powered appli-
cations, we were interested in designing a syringe pump based upon the low-end 28BYJ-48 stepper motor widely used in
introductory electronics due to its undemanding power requirements. With a coil impedance of 50 X, the 5 V motor draws
100 mA of current per coil, allowing up to two motors to be powered easily from a variety of sources, including a USB port.
One design challenge in using the 28BYJ-48 stepper motor is its low holding torque: 1.5 N
mm compared to 20 N
cm for a
typical NEMA-17 12 V 350 mA motor. To address this issue, the syringe pump described here implements a 3D printed gear
train, which allows for fluid delivery in excess of 300 lL/min depending on the type of syringe used.
Our interest was not only to design a syringe pump with low power requirements, but to develop a platform for chemical
synthesis and analysis. Microfluidic systems based upon soft lithographic techniques can be utilized in a teaching laboratory
[8]; however, the procedure is labor intensive and may not be suitable for some teaching environments [9]. Microfluidic
devices require feature sizes beyond the resolution of consumer-grade fused filament 3D printers [10]; therefore, our
approach is to develop miniaturized devices on the millifluidic scale, of which the advantages in chemical synthesis have
been demonstrated previously [11]. Additionally, millifluidic systems have the potential to scale to levels suitable for indus-
trial applications [12]. OMIS, the Open Millifluidic Inquiry System, couples a fluid delivery system to millifluidic reactors for
continuous-flow analysis. The system is controlled with an Arduino shield that supports the stepper motor drivers and pro-
vides the flexibility to incorporate sensor data acquisition. The emphasis on low power requirements, 3D printed compo-
nents and a parametric design allow for a platform that can be adapted to a wide variety of conditions, such as
incorporation into a large laboratory section or portable, battery-powered solutions. Throughout the design process, an
emphasis was made to minimize the barrier to adoption.

2. Hardware description

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of OMIS which consists of an Arduino shield, a syringe pump and a millifluidic chip. Additional
elements, such as the user interface, are necessary components of the instrument, but are considered outside of OMIS as they
should be customized for the individual application. The shield is a circuit board that connects to the top of an Arduino in
order to expand its capabilities [13]; in this case, the OMIS shield controls the speed and duration of the syringe pump
motors. Using the Arduino microcontroller also allows for facile expansion of OMIS to include sensor data acquisition
through the on-board analog inputs. The syringe-pump design incorporates three elements: the motor assembly, carriage
and idler. The motor assembly contains a gear train that provides a mechanical advantage of 15. The carriage incorporates
3D printed linear bearings and a shallow nut trap, which allows the carriage to be moved without engaging the motor. The
idler is designed to be syringe-specific in order to provide an appropriate amount of structural support. Parametric design
using OpenSCAD allows end users, even those with limited CAD experience, to customize the syringe pump. For example,
converting from a configuration that accommodates two 3-mL syringes to a configuration utilizing one 5-mL syringe only
requires one change in the OpenSCAD script which accommodates for the diameter of the syringe and the separation
between the two syringe supports, which can be set to zero for a single-syringe configuration (Fig. 2).
Fig. 3 shows several millifluidic chip designs. The general approach to creating millifluidic chips is to subtract channels of
the appropriate shape and geometry from a solid cube. Channels can be cylindrical (Left) or rectangular (Middle) and entry/
exit ports can be position on the sides or faces of the chip. Leak-free devices typically require setting the 3D printer to use
100% infill, which does not require a prohibitively large amount of filament due to the small size of the chips. For example,
the left-hand-side chip in Fig. 3 has dimensions of 25x30x2.5 mm, takes 10 min to print and requires 2 g of material (approx-
imately $0.10 in 2017 dollars). Successful channel fabrication requires that the printer be capable of bridging the channels
without the use of support material. Most contemporary fused filament 3D printers are capable of bridging the dimensions
needed for OMIS millifluidic chips.

Fig. 1. Block diagram of the components of OMIS: the Open Millifluidic Inquiry System.
 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038 3

Fig. 2. Example changes to OpenSCAD code to create a syringe pump design with dual-bore 3 mL syringes or single-bore 5-mL syringe configurations.

Fig. 3. Selected configurations for millifluidic chips. (Left) cylindrical channels with side-entry/exit ports. (Middle) Rectangular channels with top-entry/
exit ports. (Right) Variable-diameter channels with split exit port.

Several examples of the potential utility of OMIS are provided in Section 7, below. The primary advantage of OMIS over
other fluid delivery systems is the low power requirement. When operated from a Raspberry Pi computer (model B) powered
by a 2000 mAh lithium ion battery [14], the battery was not drained after one hour of continuous syringe pump operation at
10 RPM. The use of a 3D-printed gear train to address low-torque issues of inexpensive motors should provide other users
with strategies to address the use of low-power motors in other instrument designs. Finally, the incorporation of a simplified
communication and command structure with the near-ubiquitous Arduino platform allows for a highly flexible and cus-
tomizable design.

2.1. Key aspects of the hardware

OMIS is useful as a pedagogical tool in that it provides a simple-to-build and inexpensive platform for performing chem-
ical syntheses and analyses under continuous-flow conditions. The target audience includes students and faculty interested
in active-learning environments. Several aspects of the design that expand upon previously reported fluid delivery systems
include:

 use of a 5 V stepper motor which allows the syringe pump to be controlled and powered via the USB interface, making the
device more portable;
 CAD files built upon parametric principles in order to provide greater flexibility in bespoke instrumentation design;
 a platform that extends beyond a fluid delivery system to include millifluidic reactors and analysis components, all of
which can be constructed using digital fabrication tools; and
 a sufficiently robust system to accommodate research-grade inquiry, despite the primary audience being members of
undergraduate chemistry teaching laboratories.

3. Design files

3.1. CAD files

All 3D-printed parts were created using OpenSCAD in order to leverage the parametric nature of the platform and
enhance flexibility of the design. Parts for the syringe pump are prefixed with ‘‘sp_” and are separated into the carriage, idler
and motor assembly components. A global file is used to accommodate changes in the design (e.g. support-rod diameter)
that would have an effect on the entire design. Several example millifluidic devices are provided along with a disposable
cuvet insert.
4 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038

3.2. 3D printing

Parts were fabricated using a home-built 3D printer (Makerfarm i3v 800 ) and PETG (Gizmodorks) filament. A 0.2 mm layer
height was employed and support material was only used for parts containing support-rod clamps. Stereolithography files
suitable for printing the dual 3-mL syringe version of the design are included.

3.3. Electronics

The syringe-pump controller consists of an Arduino and two dual-H-bridge stepper-motor drivers. A schematic of the
design is provided in the Supplemental Information and the design is a derivative of the standard configuration for operating
a 5 V stepper motor using an Arduino.

3.4. Software

The syringe-pump controller software was written using the Arduino IDE and consists of three components. Pump.cpp is
a derivative of the standard stepper-motor-library provided by Arduino which has been modified to accommodate non-
integer stepping. PumpCommands.cpp contains the operations to be performed upon receipt of a valid command, which
consists of a two-letter operation code and a numerical argument. CommandParser.cpp allows for control of the syringe
pump via serial communication and performs basic error checking of commands passed to the instrument. Operation of
the instrument is performed through the serial monitor of the Arduino IDE, although any software capable of performing
serial communication is a feasible platform for interface development.

Design Files Summary

Design file name File type Open source license Location of the file
cylindricalCahnnels.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
mixer.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
rectangularChannels.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
sp_carriage.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
sp_global.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
sp_idler.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
sp_motor_assembly.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
syringepump.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
cuvette_insert.scad OpenSCAD CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
cylindricalCahnnels.stl 3D Object CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
mixer.stl 3D Object CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
rectangularChannels.stl 3D Object CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
sp_carriage.stl 3D Object CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
sp_idler.stl 3D Object CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
sp_motor_assembly.stl 3D Object CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
cuvette_insert.stl 3D Object CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
omis-dual.sch Eagle file CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
CommandParser.cpp Arduino firmware CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
CommandParser.h Arduino firmware CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
Pump.cpp Arduino firmware CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
Pump.h Arduino firmware CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
PumpCommands.cpp Arduino firmware CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
syringepump.ino Arduino firmware CERN OHL v1.2 https://doi.org/10.17632/h6t5g6m57t.1
 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038 5

4. Bill of materials

Bill of Materials

Designator Component Number Cost per unit Total Source of Material Type
of [USD] Cost Materials
Units
1/4 ‘‘ steel rod, 140 mm 8984 K97 2 $1.12 $2.24 McMaster-Carr Metal
length
1/4 ‘‘-20 TPI threaded 93250A058 1 $2.25 $2.25 McMaster-Carr Metal
steel
rod, 155 mm length
5 V DC small reduction 858 1 $5.00 $5.00 Adafruit Other
stepper motor
M3x10 hex-bolt 92290A115 4 $0.21 $0.82 McMaster-Carr Metal
M3x16 hex bolt 92290A120 2 $0.21 $0.42 McMaster-Carr Metal
M3x25 hex bolt 92290A124 3 $0.28 $0.84 McMaster-Carr Metal
M3 hex nut 94150A325 12 $0.06 $0.72 McMaster-Carr Metal
1/400 20 TPI nut 94819A043 3 $0.08 $0.24 McMaster-Carr Metal
1/400 20 TPI jamnut 94805A029 2 $0.08 $0.16 McMaster-Carr Metal
Syringe 2 $0.15 $0.30 Restek Polymer
Tygon tubing 3/3200 OD 14-171-208 18 ‘‘ $2.22 $2.22 Fisher Scientific Polymer
Quick-setting epoxy N/A 1 $6.99 $6.99 Lowes Composite
Arduino Uno DEV-11021 1 $24.95 $24.95 Sparkfun Semi-conductor
L293D dual H bridge 807 2 $2.95 $5.90 Adafruit Semi-conductor
PETG Filament N/A 1 $49.99 $49.99 Gizmodorks Polymer

There is a fair amount of flexibility in the choice of materials for use in the design of OMIS. Because of its chemical resistance,
316 stainless steel was chosen as the material for fasteners and support rods. While Tygon tubing was used in this work,
flexible tubing of other compositions are suitable. Because of its transparency and chemical resistance, PETG was chosen
as the 3D printing filament over more ubiquitous (PLA/ABS) plastics. A single syringe pump with millifluidic chip and con-
troller costs just under $50 to build, although a number of components cannot be purchased in unit quantities, and the initial
costs (in 2017 dollars) were closer to $230 for the smallest quantities available (e.g. fasteners at 50/pk, 1 kg of filament vs 6 g
needed for the syringe pump).
6 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038

5. Build instructions

5.1. Building the OMIS syringe pump

Step 1: Gather parts and materials

After printing the syringe-pump parts: idler, carriage and motor assembly, collect the necessary items from the bill of
materials and obtain tools such as needle nose pliers, adjustable wrench and M3 wrenches.

Step 2. Assemble idler

Place an M3 nut in each of the support rod nut traps of the idler. The syringe support is connected with an M3x24 bolt.
The spring is optional but may be helpful when loading/unloading the syringes as it keeps tension on the nut and prevents it
from turning. Springs that fit around M3 bolts can be found in retractable ball point pens.

Step 3. Insert support rods

Slide the support rods into their clamps and push them through until the ends are flush with the idler. Use M3x10 bolts to
clamp the rods tightly. The rods should not be able to be rotated easily.
 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038 7

Step 4. Attach threaded rod and carriage

Slide the carriage on to the support rods with the linear bearings facing away from the idler. Insert the threaded rod
through the carriage and into its slot in the idler. Thread one nut for the carriage, then an additional nut along with a jamnut
onto the threaded rod. None of the nuts need to be tight at this point and all of them should be lower than the height of the
support rods.

Step 5. Attach motor assembly support plate

Connect the support rods to the motor assembly support plate. Tighten the support clamps after confirming that the
pump will stand level and the carriage moves smoothly across the support rods.
8 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038

Step 6. Adjust jam-nut stop

Thread the jam nut so that it touches the motor assembly support plate. Then, turn it about 1/2 turn in the opposite direc-
tion so it is not tightly against the plate. Thread the regular nut so that it contacts the jam nut, taking care not to turn the jam
nut. Hold the jam nut with needle-nosed pliers and tighten the nut with an adjustable wrench. Neither of the nuts should
move on the threaded screw at this point.

Step 7. Install the driven gear

Press a regular-sized nut into the driven gear. Thread a jam nut onto the threaded rod as done in step 6. Thread the driven
gear onto the threaded rod, making sure that the side of the gear that is flush with the nut is pointing away from the motor
assembly plate. Secure the two nuts as in step 6.

Step 8. Install remaining motor assembly

Install M3 nuts into the nut traps on the motor assembly support plate. Slide the compound gear onto one of the M3x24
bolts and ensure that the gear rotates freely on the axis. It may be necessary to strip away a small bit of plastic from the
compound gear, which can be done by inserting a screw into the bore part way, then hammering the screw through. Use
3 M3x24 bolts to attach the back plate to the motor assembly. Additional structural support for the motor assembly can
 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038 9

be obtained by printing two cylindrical channels for the M3x24 bolts not attached to the gear train. These supports are not
shown in the image below. When completed, the compound gear should sit between the driven gear and the back plate and
should be perpendicular to the table.

Step 9. Attach the motor gear

Attach the motor gear to the stepper motor. It is possible that the fit is very tight. A utility blade can be used to cut away
some of the plastic if necessary. Attach M3x20 bolts with four nuts as shown in the picture below. Nothing should be tight-
ened at this point.

Step 10. Mount the motor to complete the build

The back plate should slide in between the two nuts. Use these to secure the motor in place. Proper alignment of the
motor is with the bolts settled into the bottom of the cutout. The syringe pump is now complete.
10 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038

5.2. Circuit design

The OMIS-shield utilizes a pair of H-drivers (L293D) for driving the stepper motors and the circuit is slightly modified
from readily available tutorials [15]. Namely, the enable pins of the L293D are connected to an Arduino digital I/O pin in
order to minimize current draw when the syringe pump is not in operation. The stepper motor has a 5-way socket. Connec-
tion to the circuit is made by addition of header pins on the OMIS-Shield. The circuit diagram is provided in the Supplemental
Information.

5.3. Arduino software

The Arduino program consists of 6 files (see Design File Summary). To successfully upload the command program to the
Arduino, these files must be located in the same directory. Prior to uploading the program, the appropriate pinouts must be
assigned to the #define directives and an appropriate estimate for LVR must be provided. A suitable starting point is the
length of the syringe barrel (in mm) divided by the volume of the syringe (in mL). Calibrating the syringe pump is described
in Section 6.2, below.

6. Operation instructions

6.1. Safety considerations

Standard safety precautions should be used when fabricating the 3D printed parts for this instrument. Proper ventilation
during printing is important to avoid excessive exposure to particulates and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) [16]; how-
ever, the material used in this work is a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) derivative which has reasonably high thermal sta-
bility and low VOC production relative to other thermoplastics such as PLA and ABS [17]. Building the OMIS syringe pump
may require cutting metal rod with a hacksaw depending on the availability of source material. Operation of the syringe
pump involves the use of a needle to connect the syringe to the mullifluidic device tubing. Use of blunt tip syringe needles
can minimize the risk of puncture without compromising instrument functionality. The volumes and flow rates used in this
work resulted in pressures that were low, and the use of Luer lock connections was deemed unnecessary; however, nothing
prevents their use should the need arise. Finally, leak testing should be performed with an innocuous solvent prior to per-
forming experiments and a suitable sealant employed as needed. In cases where leaks were present between tubing and 3D
printed parts, quick setting epoxy proved effective.

6.2. Standard operation

The OMIS syringe pump controller receives commands through a USB serial interface, which allows the instrument to be
controlled from any device that has a USB port and can engage in serial communication. Students using OMIS found the
Serial Monitor provided with the Arduino IDE software to be sufficient for controlling the syringe pump and performing
 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038 11

Table 1
Summary of operation commands for OMIS syringe pump.

Command Valid Argument Values Argument units Description

sp 0 or 1 N/A Sets which pump is being controlled
ss Positive real values between 1 and 40, inclusive RPM Sets speed of motor
mv Positive or negative integers N/A Turns motor specified number of steps
tu Positive or negative integers N/A Turns motor specified number of turns
sf Positive real values lL/min Sets flow rate
de Positive real values lL Delivers specified volume of liquid

experiments. The set of commands are listed in Table 1. A valid command consists of a two-letter operation followed by a
space and a numeric argument followed by a newline character. Serial communication speed can be configured in the syr-
ingepump.ino sketch and the default speed is 115,200 bps. Also hardcoded into the sketch is the linear volume ratio (LVR)
which is an adjustable parameter used to calibrate the amount of fluid delivered. The value depends on the geometry of the
syringe used and can be calculated by measuring the mass of water delivered (md) for a specified number of turns (nt) and
the density of water (d) according to the following equation:
nt
d
LVR ¼
MA
TPM
md

7. Validation and characterization

7.1. Assessing precision of fluid volume delivery

The precision of fluid delivery was assessed by measuring the mass of water delivered as a function of motor speed when
300 lL of water was delivered. Fig. 4 displays the mass of water delivered per motor revolution from a 3 mL plastic syringe as
well as a 5 mL glass syringe. Error bars represent the standard deviations of four trials. In general, fluid delivery is unaffected
by motor speed up to approximately 35 RPM, at which point there is a decrease in the reproducibility of measurements.
Additionally, the mass of water delivered per revolution begins to decrease, which suggests that the stepper motor is skip-
ping steps under these conditions. Between 10 and 35 RPM, the average mass of water delivered per revolution for the 3 mL
syringe is 6.07 ± 0.17 lg/rev (n = 65) and the comparable value for the 5 mL glass syringe is 8.84 ± 0.16 ug/rev (n = 50). Under
these conditions, the syringe pump can deliver water from a 3 mL syringe at flow rates between 60 and 200 lL/min with a
precision, measured as relative standard deviation, of 2%. The larger diameter of the 5 mL syringe results in higher flow rates,
90 to 310 lL/min, with a precision of 3%.

7.2. Synthesis of magnetite

The synthesis of magnetic nanoparticles is an experiment commonly encountered in undergraduate chemistry laborato-
ries [18]. Recently, the synthesis was modified such that it could be used to demonstrate the utility of flow synthesis in
microfluidic devices. [8] As such, it is a useful procedure to demonstrate the viability of OMIS as a tool in the undergraduate
laboratory. Magnetite, Fe3O4, is generated in aqueous media according to the following reaction:

Fe2þ þ 2 Fe3þ þ 8 NH3 þ 4 H2 O ! Fe3 O4 þ 8 NHþ4

Fig. 4. Precision of fluid delivery as a function of motor speed. Three mL plastic (red) and 5 mL glass (blue) syringes were employed. Error bars represent
standard deviations of four trials. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)
12 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038

A key factor to the success of this reaction is precise control over the stoichiometry of the reaction and controlled mixing
of the reagents, both of which can be accomplished using flow reactors. Solutions of 2 M FeCl3, 1 M FeCl2 and 0.7 M NH3 were
prepared as per the literature [8]. One of the syringes of the dual-bore OMIS syringe pump was filled with a 1:1 mixture of
the iron solutions and the second was filled with the ammonia solution. Solutions were dispensed at 60 lL/min into one of
three different millifluidic devices (see Fig. 5). The device geometry: channel diameter, length and the presence of serpentine
curves, all impact the rate at which the magnetite is formed. The ability to rapidly print a millifluidic device – the devices
presented in this work can be printed in approximately 10 min – makes possible the option to explore multiple iterations
of a design in a single laboratory setting. As shown in Fig. 5, successful synthesis of the product can be determined by testing
for magnetic properties of the eluent.

7.3. Flow through a low-volume 3D printed cuvette insert

Visible spectroscopy is a ubiquitous tool for analysis in the chemical laboratory; therefore, it is worthwhile to demon-
strate how the technique can be incorporated into OMIS. A low-volume flow-cell insert was designed to fit a Fisher Scientific
1.5 mL polystyrene disposable cuvette. The geometric volume of the cell, excluding the entry and exit ports, is 300 lL and the
device is sealed with quick-setting epoxy to eliminate leaks. To explore the effect of flow rate on the time required to com-
pletely flush the flow-cell cuvette insert, the time required to achieve the maximum absorbance (k = 520 nm) of a red food
dye solution was measured. Fig. 6 is a plot of the normalized absorbance for flow rates from 100 to 240 lL/min. The time axis
has been shifted to facilitate comparison of the three measurements by setting the time at the inflection point equal to zero.

Fig. 5. Millifluidic devices used in the synthesis of magnetite. Left top and bottom have serpentine channels that trapped particles and prohibited successful
elution of the product. A straight channel (center) configuration provided more facile generation of magnetite, which could be identified by testing with a
magnetic stir bar (right).

Fig. 6. Absorbance of red food dye measured under dynamic flow conditions. Absorbance is normalized by the maximum value observed at 520 nm. The
time axis has been shifted to allow for comparison between the three flow rates. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the
reader is referred to the web version of this article.)
 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038 13

Each trace represents an average of three trials. As flow rate increases, the time required to reach the maximum absorbance
decreases, which is represented by an increase in the slope of the trace at the inflection point. The inflection-point slopes are
26, 46 and 67 mAU/s, respectively. The relative increase in inflection-point slope is consistent with the increase in flow rate
and serves as a metric to estimate the time needed for a complete exchange of liquid in the insert to occur. In a continuous-
flow experiment, this value provides a lower limit to the data acquisition rate which ranges from 0.03 to 0.07 hz for the flow
rates shown.

7.4. Laminar flow and diffusive mixing

Because of the small channel diameters and low flow rates, liquids within millifluidic devices experience laminar flow.
When two streams combine, mixing will be of a diffusional nature at the interface between the two streams. This phenom-
ena can allow for highly controlled reaction conditions and, when paired with an appropriately designed millifluidic device,
could provide a means for separating reagents and products from a single stream. Fig. 7 (left and center) is a video snapshot
demonstrating laminar flow in a 3D printed millifluidic chip. The full movie clip (Video 1) demonstrating the diffusional mix-
ing effect is available in the Supplemental Information. Blue and yellow dyes are introduced into a single stream at 50 lL/
min (left) and 200 lL/min (center). The higher flow rate decreases the amount of time for diffusional mixing to occur, result-
ing in a stream that is not homogeneous upon exiting the millifluidic chip. Lower flow rates allows for mixing to occur within
the channel as demonstrated in the left-hand side of the figure. With an appropriately designed millifluidic chip, it is possible
to leverage the lack of diffusional mixing. Fig. 7(right) demonstrates this process with colored dyes entering into a single

Fig. 7. Laminar flow in 3D printed millifluidic devices. The degree of mixing within a channel containing blue and yellow dyes at low (left) and high (center)
flow rates. (right) At high flow rates, streams have insufficient amount of time to mix and can be separated in an appropriately-designed millifluidic device.
(For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

Video 1.
14 R.J. LeSuer et al. / HardwareX 2 (2018) e00038

serpentine stream. At a high flow rate of 150 lL/min, the fluids do not spend a sufficient amount of time in the channel for
diffusive mixing to generate a homogeneous stream. The channel can subsequently be split, retrieving the individual
components.

8. Summary of capabilities and limitations

The OMIS syringe pump was designed with specific constraints in mind – an inexpensive stepper motor and no external
power supply – in order to increase the accessibility of the instrument through decreased costs, ease of construction and
potential for portability. These design constraints place a limit on the maximum flow rate achievable using this device,
although the operable range is sufficient for performing a variety of chemical investigations and preparations. The external
power restriction also limits scalability. Other low-cost syringe pump solutions have been designed using LegoTM building
blocks as the hardware which address this issue [19]. When resources are limited and 3D printing services are accessible,
the OMIS platform can be used to introduce instrument miniaturization and continuous flow chemistry into the undergrad-
uate curriculum.

9. Declaration of interest

None.

Acknowledgments

Funding: This work was supported through start-up funds provided by the College at Brockport, SUNY.

Appendix A. Supplementary data

Supplementary data associated with this article can be found, in the online version, at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ohx.2018.
e00038.

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