Skip to main content
bioRxiv
  • Home
  • About
  • Submit
  • ALERTS / RSS
Advanced Search
New Results

Paperfuge: An ultra-low cost, hand-powered centrifuge inspired by the mechanics of a whirligig toy

View ORCID ProfileM. Saad Bhamla, Brandon Benson, Chew Chai, Georgios Katsikis, Aanchal Johri, Manu Prakash
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/072207
M. Saad Bhamla
1Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for M. Saad Bhamla
Brandon Benson
1Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Chew Chai
1Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Georgios Katsikis
2Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Aanchal Johri
1Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Manu Prakash
1Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • For correspondence: manup@stanford.edu
  • Abstract
  • Full Text
  • Info/History
  • Metrics
  • Supplementary material
  • Preview PDF
Loading

Abstract

Sample preparation, including separation of plasma from whole blood or isolation of parasites, is an unmet challenge in many point of care (POC) diagnostics and requires centrifugation as the first key step. From the context of global health applications, commercial centrifuges are expensive, bulky and electricity-powered, leading to a critical bottle-neck in the development of decentralized, electricity-free POC diagnostic devices. By uncovering the fundamental mechanics of an ancient whirligig toy (3300 B.C.E), we design an ultra-low cost (20 cents), light-weight (2 g), human-powered centrifuge that is made out of paper (“paperfuge”). To push the operating limits of this unconventional centrifuge, we present an experimentally-validated theoretical model that describes the paperfuge as a non-linear, non-conservative oscillator system. We use this model to inform our design process, achieving speeds of 125,000 rpm and equivalent centrifugal forces of 30,000 g, with theoretical limits predicting one million rpm. We harness these speeds to separate pure plasma in less than 1.5 minutes and isolate malaria parasites in 15 minutes from whole human blood. By expanding the materials used, we implement centrifugal microfluidics using PDMS, plastic and 3D-printed devices, ultimately opening up new opportunities for electricity-free POC diagnostics, especially in resource-poor settings.

Footnotes

  • One sentence summary: By uncovering the dynamics of a classical toy, we invent a paper-based, low-cost (20 cents) centrifuge, capable of 125,000 rpm, using only hand-power.

Copyright 
The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.
Back to top
PreviousNext
Posted August 30, 2016.
Download PDF

Supplementary Material

Email

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word about bioRxiv.

NOTE: Your email address is requested solely to identify you as the sender of this article.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Paperfuge: An ultra-low cost, hand-powered centrifuge inspired by the mechanics of a whirligig toy
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from bioRxiv
(Your Name) thought you would like to see this page from the bioRxiv website.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Share
Paperfuge: An ultra-low cost, hand-powered centrifuge inspired by the mechanics of a whirligig toy
M. Saad Bhamla, Brandon Benson, Chew Chai, Georgios Katsikis, Aanchal Johri, Manu Prakash
bioRxiv 072207; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/072207
Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo LinkedIn logo Mendeley logo
Citation Tools
Paperfuge: An ultra-low cost, hand-powered centrifuge inspired by the mechanics of a whirligig toy
M. Saad Bhamla, Brandon Benson, Chew Chai, Georgios Katsikis, Aanchal Johri, Manu Prakash
bioRxiv 072207; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/072207

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Subject Area

  • Bioengineering
Subject Areas
All Articles
  • Animal Behavior and Cognition (4658)
  • Biochemistry (10313)
  • Bioengineering (7636)
  • Bioinformatics (26241)
  • Biophysics (13481)
  • Cancer Biology (10650)
  • Cell Biology (15361)
  • Clinical Trials (138)
  • Developmental Biology (8464)
  • Ecology (12776)
  • Epidemiology (2067)
  • Evolutionary Biology (16794)
  • Genetics (11373)
  • Genomics (15431)
  • Immunology (10580)
  • Microbiology (25087)
  • Molecular Biology (10172)
  • Neuroscience (54233)
  • Paleontology (398)
  • Pathology (1660)
  • Pharmacology and Toxicology (2884)
  • Physiology (4326)
  • Plant Biology (9213)
  • Scientific Communication and Education (1582)
  • Synthetic Biology (2545)
  • Systems Biology (6761)
  • Zoology (1459)