Interfacial configurations and mixing performances of fluids in staggered curved-channel micromixers

A parallel laminar micromixer with staggered curved channels is designed and fabricated in our study. The split-and-recombination (SAR) structures of the flow channels result in the reduction of the diffusion distance of two fluids. Furthermore, the impinging effects increase the mixing strength whereas one stream is injected into the other. The particles trajectories are utilized to numerically examine the mixing and fluidic behaviors inside the staggered curved microchannel with tapered structures. The effects of various Reynolds numbers and channel configurations on mixing performances are investigated in terms of the experimental mixing indices and the computational interfacial patterns.