Use of droplet-based microfluidic techniques in the preparation of microparticles.

ABSTRACT

Microparticles are widely used in myriad fields such as pharmaceuticals, foods, cosmetics, and other industrial fields. Compared with traditional methods for synthesizing microparticles, microfluidic techniques provide very powerful platforms for creating highly controllable emulsion droplets as templates for fabricating uniform microparticles with advanced structures and functions. Microfluidic techniques can generate emulsion droplets with precisely controlled size, shape, and composition. A more precise preparation process brings an effective tool to control the release profile of the drug and introduces an easily accessible reproducibility. The paper gives information about basic droplet-based set-ups and examples of attainable microparticle types preparable by this method.