Department Chemical Engineering
Principal investigator Bijoy Bera
E-mail address b.bera-1@tudelft.nl
Artificial Kidney
Suitable as a BEP? Yes
Suitable as a MEP? Yes
Suitable as an Academic Research Project? Yes
Techniques:
- Experimental investigation of membrane coating and blood compatibility
- 3D printing a membrane stack resembling our kidney
Kidney failure is a major problem in the health sector since the waiting list to find a donor is very long and dialysis is an ineffective, painful treatment. In this project, we investigate and fabricate a (cell-phone sized) portable filtration unit that might be a potential solution in the future for kidney patients.
Further reading (click to link to article)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272638625000538
Biomedical glue
Suitable as a BEP? Yes
Suitable as a MEP? Yes
Suitable as an Academic Research Project? Yes
Techniques:
- Experimental/numerical investigation of a bio-polymer flowing together with salt solutions/blood in a microchannel
Patching wounds is a frequently occurring treatment in the medical sector but the glues which are currently used are all inadequate in wet environments. In this project, we investigate the flow properties of a new type of glue, inspired by bio-polymers from nature (spider, underwater animals), to create an ideal medical glue of the future. The flow properties are investigated in a micro-environment (microchannels) for understanding the micro-scale interfacial phenomena.
Further reading (click to link to article)
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01801
(Example) projects submitted by lab in past years
(2024-2025) Biomimetic Glue
Supervisor: Bijoy Bera, b.bera-1@tudelft.nl
In this experimental/numerical project, we investigate the flow properties of polyelectrolyte complexes which have shown to be ideal candidates to replace ineffective, non-ionic glues currently used in the hospitals. The rheological properties of such polyelectrolytes remain unknown and without knowing them, we cannot give them the form of industrially manufacturable/practically usable medical glues. This project investigates the micro-rheological properties of such polymer complexes.
Techniques
- Microfluidic experiments (or the simulation thereof) consisting of parallel flow formation in a microchannel.
- Numerical technique consists of Lattice Boltzmann simulation of the interface formed between the polymer complex and an aqueous phase.
Further reading
(2024-2025) Numerical Investigation of Liposome Nanoparticle formation using microfluidics
Supervisor: Bijoy Bera, b.bera-1@tudelft.nl
Many vaccines or medical drugs require Liposome nanoparticles (NP), but the production of such nanoparticles is not a highly optimized process. Microfluidics can produce uniformly sized NPs, however, the paramaters required for optimum production is not well-understood. In this project, we numerically investigate the underlying physical mechanisms of NP formation.
Techniques
- (Lattice Boltzmann) simulation