Flow Controller For Osmotic Pressure Studies

Cutting-edge microfluidic flow controller for osmotic exchanges

Osmosis is a well-established principle that describes the movement of solvent molecules, such as water, across a semi-permeable membrane to equilibrate the concentration of two liquids. Reverse osmosis consists in applying pressure on the most concentrated solution to force the solvent molecules to go through the membrane. This technique is commonly used for desalination to purify seawater from dissolved salts, resulting in pure water on one side of the membrane and a highly saline solution on the other. For desalination, reverse osmosis is employed on a large scale but for research and optimization, microfluidic osmosis is an effective approach for testing various conditions. 

Whether you work with normal or reverse osmosis experiments, for short or week-long processes and experiments, with stable or evolving pressures, the OB1 MK4 flow controller is the ideal instrument for optimizing your osmosis tests. Contact our team of experts to find out the best configuration for your setup.

Customizable & upgradable solution for osmosis experiments

The OB1 MK4 flow controller is a versatile instrument that can be customized to meet your specific experimental requirements. With two independent channels, you can control both your solvent solution and feed solution, allowing you to run multiple chips simultaneously by splitting the flow. Should you need to duplicate your system, up to four channels can be set per flow controller, and multiple flow controllers can also be used.

To further tailor the flow controller to your needs, the pressure range for each individual outlet can be configured within a range of -1 bar to 8 bar. Our team of experts is available to help you determine the best configuration and number of pressure outlets required for your experiment. 

Control the flow rates of your solvent & your feed solution

The osmosis principle relies on the precise flow of molecules from one solution to the other through a semi-permeable membrane. The flow rate of the two solutions must be carefully adjusted to facilitate these exchanges. By connecting the OB1 MK4 to a flow rate sensor (MFS) or our premium Coriolis flow sensor (BFS, for both liquid and gas), you can accurately measure the flow of liquids from your two solutions and optimize osmosis exchanges.

With our intuitive software, you will have access to the two independent lines and you can finely control either the applied pressure or the flow rate passing through your microfluidic chip. Automated experiments can also be easily performed by creating a sequence of instructions in our sequencer. For more advanced users, the SDK libraries allow you to control the OB1 MK4 with your own code while connecting it to other instruments. 

By using our advanced flow control solutions, you can ensure that your osmosis experiments are optimized and yield accurate results. Our team of experts is available to help you determine the optimal configuration.