Help Center
Product development, prototyping and production
Does Micronit offer product development services?
We sure do! Micronit has a large team of engineers and scientists ready to support customers with engineering and product development services. We have been a product developer and manufacturer for microfluidic devices for over twenty years and are ISO 9001 anf ISO 13485 certified. Learn more about our product development services here: https://www.micronit.com/services/product-development
Does Micronit offer prototyping services?
We sure do! Micronit has over twenty years of prototyping and production experience. We strongly recommend to combine prototyping with a product development track to assure a design optmized for future manufacturing.
We are looking forward to learn more about your prototyping needs! Perhaps the page blow is a good start?
Does Micronit produce in volume?
We offer our customers a full trajectory from idea to manufacturing. Among our customers are leading players in the Next Gen Sequencing field. So yes, we are used to volume producing. Our manufacturing facilities are ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 certified.
More details can be found here:
https://www.micronit.com/services/product-development We are looking forward to learn more about your development and manufacturing needs!
https://www.micronit.com/services/product-development We are looking forward to learn more about your development and manufacturing needs!
Payment
Can I pay by creditcard?
Yes, you can pay for you order by creditcard. We accept Mastercard and Visa. Orders placed directly in the webstore are free of additional costs. For orders placed outside the webstore environment, we charge a 3,75% fee.
We only process creditcard payments through a secure environment. Micronit employees will never ask for creditcard details.
Can I pay by Paypal?
Yes, you can pay for you order using Paypal. A Paypall transaction can be made during the checkout process. Orders placed directly in the webstore are free of additional costs. For orders placed outside the webstore environment, we charge a 3,75% fee.
Shipment
Which shipment carrier will be used to deliver my order?
We generally use UPS as our global shipment carrier.
Shipment on your organization's UPS or FedEx account is also possible. For this service, we charge an administrative fee of €20,-. If you wish to make use of this service, please submit the account details together with your order.
How long will shipment take?
Our aim is to ship within a week, and normally shipment takes a few days, depending of the country of destination.
Our webstore doesn’t feature real-time stock data, in exceptional cases items can be out of stock (even if indicated differently) and additional lead times might occur. In such cases, you will be separately informed.
Some make to order products always have an additional lead-time as indicated in the item description.
Discount
Do you offer an academic discount?
No, we do not offer academic discounts. In our webstore we offer the best price for all parties alike, without the need for negotiations.
I'm purchasing on behalf of somebody else, can I get a distributor discount?
No, we do not offer discounts to distributors that are not appointed by Micronit.
Distributors
I'm located in the People's Republic of China. Do you have a distributor here?
Yes, we have a (non-exclusive) distributor in the PRC.
Contact details are:
Micro-Nano Cube Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd
Chaoyang District
Beijing Jiuxianqiao Electronic City, R&D Center Block A2 West seven
Beijing Email: inquiry@microblox.cn
Phone: 010-58237080 http://www.beijingec.com
Chaoyang District
Beijing Jiuxianqiao Electronic City, R&D Center Block A2 West seven
Beijing Email: inquiry@microblox.cn
Phone: 010-58237080 http://www.beijingec.com
I'm located in Japan. Do you have a distributor here?
Yes, we have a distributor in Japan.
Contact details are:
Kyodo International Inc.
2-10-9, Miyazaki
Miyamae-ku
Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa-ken
216-0033, Japan phone: +81-44-853-2611 (main office)
fax: +81-44-854-1979 e-mail: info@kyodo-inc.com https://www.kyodo-inc.co.jp/
2-10-9, Miyazaki
Miyamae-ku
Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa-ken
216-0033, Japan phone: +81-44-853-2611 (main office)
fax: +81-44-854-1979 e-mail: info@kyodo-inc.com https://www.kyodo-inc.co.jp/
Should I order directly or does Micronit work with distributors?
We have distributors in Japan and the People's Republic of China. We also have a distributor agreement with Darwin Microfluidics https://darwin-microfluidics.com/. Only in Japan it's necessary to order directly at the distrubutor (Kyodo).
Alfa Chemistry (Microfluidics) is NOT a distributor of Micronit.
We are informed by a customer that product description and picture are copied by Alpha Chemistry (Microfluidics). This is done without any permission from Micronit.
Micronit doesn't have any relationship with this company and the information on the website looks to be copied from multiple (microfluidics) companies. We strongly recommend for safety reasons not to place any orders at this company. We where not able to verify the incorporation status of this company using the provided information on their website.
Micronit doesn't have any relationship with this company and the information on the website looks to be copied from multiple (microfluidics) companies. We strongly recommend for safety reasons not to place any orders at this company. We where not able to verify the incorporation status of this company using the provided information on their website.
Product group: droplet generators
I need a pumping system for my setup. Which one do you recommend?
We recommend using a high precision pumping system. Regular syringe pumps often don't work very well for droplet generators. There are several high precision pumping systems on the market that work with different pumping principles.
To name one, we'd like to mention that we have had positive experiences with the equipment Fluigent offers: https://www.fluigent.com/
Which flowrates should I use?
This depends on many things. For example on the type of fluid that you are using. Check our flowrate instructions to find out how to start.
I only see streaks of fluids but no droplets. How do I get the droplets?
Decrease your flowrate. Check our flowrate instructions for a more acurate explanation.
Which surfactants should I use?
Use our surfactant guide for advice on surfactants.
How do I prevent clogging of my chips?
Have a look at our clogging prevention guide.
Should I use coated or uncoated droplet generators?
Have a look at our article about surface wetting properties.
Product group: EOR
Which pressure and temperature can the EOR chip hold?
The EOR chip itself is manufactured from glass an can easily withstand up to 300⁰C. The chips are supplied in a black fluidic cartridge however. This cartridge can widthstand up to 80⁰C.
No sealant is used, the two layers of glass are fusion bonded together.
The chip can withstand easily up to 100 bar. The external interfacing is more critical however. Our Fluidic Connect holder offers the largest pressure, up to 80 bars (maybe less at elevated temperatures). Please note that it might be helpful to practice a little with the Fluidic Connect holder first. You need to get the feeling to apply not too much force, which might break the chip, but enough to obtain sufficient sealing. It might be necessary to tighten a bit more when pressure and temperature are increased. Please remove the pressure before additional tightening.
I'm using the Fluidic Connect 4515 holder (part of high pressure bundle), what alignment and fluidic port should I use?
The fluidic ports are on positions 3,8
Alignment can be done on positions 2,7 (or 4,9).
Alignment can be done on positions 2,7 (or 4,9).
Product group: OOC
Is it possible to monitor oxygen levels?
It is possible to couple Micronit OOC devices to commercial optical readers for dissolved gases in the culture medium. This option allows for applications such as the monitoring of oxygen in the culture chamber.
Is my OOC system compatible with my imaging systems?
Have a look at this document about imaging systems.
The membrane is moving and flow is switching between top and bottom flow path. What is happening?
Always check that there’s no blockage in one of the flow paths, this can be verified by checking the amount of collected liquid in a specific time frame and compare it with the expected amount for the flow rate used.
If this isn't the case, droplet formation on the end of the tubing is the problem. Each falling droplet affects the flow a bit, resulting in changes in flow rates. Resolve this by keeping the end of the tubing in the collection reservoir submerged in liquid.
How do I clean my resealable flow cell's / OOC top and bottom layers?
Cleaning
Resealable flowcells are produced in cleanroom facilities and clean areas to prevent physical impurities. After use, cleaning might be required to remove organic residues. Please use distinguished cleaning processes for glass slides with and without a gasket.
Glass slides with gasket:
Can be cleaned with ethanol, isopropanol and acetone. The glass slides could be either immersed in the solvents or rinsed with them. Immersion might lead to diffusion of solvents into the gasket. Therefore, it is recommended to rinse the glass slide with the gasket thoroughly with water or buffer to remove residues.
Only wipe with lint free tissue, otherwise the sealing might be affected negatively or completely lost.
It is advised to not wipe the gasket as this might damage it and reduce its sealing abilities.
Physical cleaning of the surface by either heat (with a maximum temperature of 140 °C) or oxygen plasma is possible.
Cleaning with acids or bases has not been fully tested.
Glass...
How do I sterilize my resealable flow cell's / OOC top and bottom layers?
Sterilization
Resealable flowcells are not sterilized when delivered. Please use distinguished sterilization processes for glass slides with and without a gasket.
Glass slides with gasket:
Can be sterilized with ethanol.
Dry heat of up to 140 °C can be applied.
Can be autoclaved.
Glass slides without gasket:
Can be sterilized with ethanol.
Can be autoclaved.
What is the oxygen permeability data for the elastomer used?
The oxygen permeability data from the exact material grade used is not available, however the data from a different grade of the same material family, can be found below.
Publication: Implementation of a dynamic intestinal gut-on-a-chip barrier model for transport studies of lipophilic dioxin congeners.
Kulthong K, Duivenvoorde L, Mizera BZ, Rijkers D, Dam GT, Oegema G, Puzyn T, Bouwmeester H, Van Der Zande M. Implementation of a dynamic intestinal gut-on-a-chip barrier model for transport studies of lipophilic dioxin congeners. RSC Advances. 2018; 8(57): 32440-32453
Abstract
Novel microfluidic technologies allow the manufacture of in vitro organ-on-a-chip systems that hold great promise to adequately recapitulate the biophysical and functional complexity of organs found in vivo. In this study, a gut-on-a-chip model was developed aiming to study the potential cellular association and transport of food contaminants. Intestinal epithelial cells (Caco-2) were cultured on a porous polyester membrane that was tightly clamped between two glass slides to form two separate flow chambers. Glass syringes, polytetrafluoroethylene tubing and glass microfluidic chips were selected to minimize...
Publication: Microfluidic chip for culturing intestinal epithelial cell layers: Characterization and comparison of drug transport between dynamic and static models.
Kulthong K, Duivenvoorde L, Sun H, Confederat S, Wu J, Spenkelink B, de Haan L, Marin V, van der Zande M, Bouwmeester H. Microfluidic chip for culturing intestinal epithelial cell layers: Characterization and comparison of drug transport between dynamic and static models. Toxicol In Vitro. 2020 Jun;65:104815
Abstract
Dynamic flow in vitro models are currently widely explored for their applicability in drug development research. The application of gut-on-chip models in toxicology is lagging behind. Here we report the application of a gut-on-chip model for biokinetic studies and compare the observed biokinetics of reference compounds with those obtained using a conventional static in vitro ...
Publication: Transcriptome comparisons of in vitro intestinal epithelia grown under static and microfluidic gut-on-chip conditions with in vivo human epithelia.
Kulthong K, Hooiveld GJEJ, Duivenvoorde L, Miro Estruch I, Marin V, van der Zande M, Bouwmeester H. Transcriptome comparisons of in vitro intestinal epithelia grown under static and microfluidic gut-on-chip conditions with in vivo human epithelia. Sci Rep. 2021 Feb 5;11(1):3234. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-82853-6.
Abstract
Gut-on-chip devices enable exposure of cells to a continuous flow of culture medium, inducing shear stresses and could thus better recapitulate the in vivo human intestinal environment in an in vitro epithelial model compared to static culture methods. We aimed to study if dynamic culture conditions affect the gene expression of Caco-2 cells cultured statically or dynamically in a gut-on-chip device and...
Publication: Comparison of gene expression and biotransformation activity of HepaRG cells under static and dynamic culture conditions.
Duivenvoorde LPM, Louisse J, Pinckaers NET, Nguyen T, van der Zande M. Comparison of gene expression and biotransformation activity of HepaRG cells under static and dynamic culture conditions. Sci Rep. 2021 May 14;11(1):10327.
Abstract
Flow conditions have been shown to be important in improving longevity and functionality of primary hepatocytes, but the impact of flow on HepaRG cells is largely unknown. We studied the expression of genes encoding CYP enzymes and transporter proteins and CYP1 and CYP3A4 activity during 8 weeks of culture in HepaRG cells cultured under static conditions (conventional 24-/96-well plate culture with common bicarbonate/CO2 buffering) and under flow conditions in an organ-on-chip (OOC) device. Since the OOC...
Product group: resealable
How do I clean my resealable flow cell's / OOC top and bottom layers?
Cleaning
Resealable flowcells are produced in cleanroom facilities and clean areas to prevent physical impurities. After use, cleaning might be required to remove organic residues. Please use distinguished cleaning processes for glass slides with and without a gasket.
Glass slides with gasket:
Can be cleaned with ethanol, isopropanol and acetone. The glass slides could be either immersed in the solvents or rinsed with them. Immersion might lead to diffusion of solvents into the gasket. Therefore, it is recommended to rinse the glass slide with the gasket thoroughly with water or buffer to remove residues.
Only wipe with lint free tissue, otherwise the sealing might be affected negatively or completely lost.
It is advised to not wipe the gasket as this might damage it and reduce its sealing abilities.
Physical cleaning of the surface by either heat (with a maximum temperature of 140 °C) or oxygen plasma is possible.
Cleaning with acids or bases has not been fully tested.
Glass...
How do I sterilize my resealable flow cell's / OOC top and bottom layers?
Sterilization
Resealable flowcells are not sterilized when delivered. Please use distinguished sterilization processes for glass slides with and without a gasket.
Glass slides with gasket:
Can be sterilized with ethanol.
Dry heat of up to 140 °C can be applied.
Can be autoclaved.
Glass slides without gasket:
Can be sterilized with ethanol.
Can be autoclaved.
What is the oxygen permeability data for the elastomer used?
The oxygen permeability data from the exact material grade used is not available, however the data from a different grade of the same material family, can be found below.
What are the dimension of the available view window using the resealable / OOC chip holder?
The available view window is 25x12mm
Tags
OOC (11) Publication (9) Droplet (8) Fluidic Connect Pro (7) Sheet nozzles (5) Resealable (4) Distributor (4) Fluidic Connect 4515 (4) Prototyping and production (4) Product development (3) Flowrate (2) Payment (2) EOR (2) Shipment (2) Coating (2) Discount (2) Sideconnect (2) Cleaning (2) Leakage (1) Chips (1)