Search results for "Microsystem"
showing 10 items of 13 documents
DE.DU.ENER.T. project: A prototype of a sustainable energy microsystem
2016
The paper presents a prototype of a microsystem for the integration and the optimal management of renewable energy sources in order to attain a reduction of the total energy consumption of a not residential building. The system composed by the building and the prototype is an energy sustainable microsystem and is located in Italy in the city of Valderice. The microsystem has been conceived in the ENPI (European Neighborhood and Partnership Instrument) cross-border cooperation Italy - Tunisia 2007-2013 DE.DU.ENER.T. (Le DEveloppement DUrable dans la production ENERgetique dans le Territoire) research project framework. In the paper the purposes of the DE.DU.ENER.T. project are presented and …
Chromatographic Air Analyzer Microsystem for the Selective and Sensitive Detection of Explosive-related Compounds
2014
Abstract The detection of explosives and explosive-related compounds is of major importance for the monitoring of explosive- contaminated sites. Current methods need to become cheaper and portable while maintaining a high sensitivity and selectivity level. In that sense, a silicon micro-analytical platform consisting of a three-dimensional micro-preconcentrator based on a hydrophobic zeolite, coupled to a silicon spiral micro-column was built. A chemical gas sensor acted as a miniaturized gas detector. This system allowed selective detection of orthonitrotoluene (ONT), an explosive-related compound at the sub-ppm level in the presence of toluene and moisture.
An Alginate/Cyclodextrin Spray Drying Matrix to Improve Shelf Life and Antioxidant Efficiency of a Blood Orange By-Product Extract Rich in Polyphenol…
2017
Alginate and β-cyclodextrin were used to produce easily dosable and spray-dried microsystems of a dried blood orange extract with antidysmetabolic properties, obtained from a by-product fluid extract. The spray-dried applied conditions were able to obtain a concentrate dried extract without the loss of AOA and with TPC and TMA values of 35–40% higher than that of the starting material. They were also effective in producing microparticles with 80–100% of encapsulation efficiency. The 2% sodium alginate was capable of improving the extract shelf life, while the beta-cyclodextrin (1 : 1 molar ratio with dried extract) prolonged the extract antioxidant efficiency by 6 hours. The good inhibition…
A MEMS array-type Mirau interferometer for swept-source OCT imaging with applications in dermatology
2017
In the frame the European project VIAMOS (www.viamos.eu) we developed a microsystem based on Mirau interferometry and applied for optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging of living tissues. The objective is to benefit from advanced MOEMS technologies, enabling a new generation of miniature and low-cost instruments using the concept of the swept-source OCT (SS-OCT) microsystem based on spectrally tuned Mirau interferometry, into which a doublet of microlens matrices (4×4) and a wafer of movable reference mirrors are included, building the active Mirau interferometer.
Engineering Polymer Microparticles by Droplet Microfluidics
2013
Capillary-based flow-focusing and co-flow microsystems were developed to produce sphere-like polymer microparticles of adjustable sizes in the range of 50 to 600 μm with a narrow size distribution (CV < 5%) and different morphologies (core-shell, janus, and capsules). Rod-like particles whose length was conveniently adjusted between 400 μm and few millimeters were also produced using the same microsystems. Influence of operating conditions (flow rate of the different fluid, microsystem characteristic dimensions, and design) as well as material parameters (viscosity of the different fluids and surface tension) was investigated. Empirical relationships were thus derived from experimental data…
Design of an image processing integrated circuit for real time edge detection
2003
Presents the design of a real time image processing micro-system to detect defects on manufacturing products. The analysis method is based on an edge detection algorithm (differential operators) to select the information related to the structure of the objects present in the image. The edge calculation function has been integrated in a standard cell circuit using a CMOS 1.5 mu m process. The ASIC has been implemented and tested in an image processing microsystem with a CCD camera. Results show an improvement of performances (speed, noise, size reduction system characterization, etc. . .) in comparison with the first prototypes (software implementation and printed board with standard compone…
Muscular MEMS—the engineering of liquid crystal elastomer actuators
2016
A new class of soft-matter actuator, the liquid crystal elastomer (LCE), shows promise for application in a wide variety of mechanical microsystems. Frequently referred to as an 'artificial muscle', this family of materials exhibits large actuation stroke and generates considerable force, in a compact form which may easily be combined with the structures and devices commonly used in microsystems and MEMS. We show here how standard microfabrication techniques may be used to integrate LCEs into mechanical microsystems and present an in-depth analysis of their mechanical and actuation properties. Using an example from micro-optics and optical MEMS, we demonstrate that their performance and fle…
Experimentation of sustainable energy microsystems: The DE.DU.ENER.T. research project
2015
The paper focuses on an energy sustainable prototype micro-system installed upon a roof of a building in Valderice (Italy). This micro-system has been conceived in the ENPI (European Neighborhood and Partnership Instrument) cross-border cooperation Italy - Tunisia 2007–2013 DE.DU.ENER.T. (Le DEveloppement DUrable dans la production ENERgetique dans le Territoire) research project framework. The main aim of this project is the construction of a sustainable energy micro-system prototype suitable for the optimal integration and management of renewable energy resources (photovoltaic, wind and solar thermal) and to reduce the building's energy consumption. In the paper the project and the protot…
Synthesis of polymer materials for use as cell culture substrates
2007
International audience; Up to today, several techniques have been used to maintain cells in culture for studying many aspects of cell biology and physiology. More often, cell culture is dependent on proper anchorage of cells to the growth surface. Thus, poly-L-lysine, fibronectin or laminin are the most commonly used substrates. In this study, electrosynthesized biocompatible polymer films are proposed as an alternative to these standard substrates. The electrosynthesized polymers tested were polyethylenimine, polypropylenimme and polypyrrole. Then, the adhesion, proliferation and morphology of rat neuronal cell lines were investigated on these polymer substrates in an attempt to develop ne…
A low power interface circuit design for a CMOS based smart optical sensor
2012
In this paper, a CMOS interface circuit as part of an optical sensor-based microsystem for pH monitoring applications is presented. The proposed circuit is capable of processing a voltage signal produced by the light transducer and generating 8-bit digital outputs representing the color information (i.e. wavelength). A resolution of 8 different colors has been achieved as a proof of concept and can easily be extended to a higher number of colors without a major modification in the architecture. The proposed interface circuit is a mixed-signal solution that consists of analog as well as digital building blocks along with a light transducer. It can be used as a portable and non-intrusive opti…