A passive and programmable 3D paper-

based microfluidic pump for variable flow

microfluidic applications
Cite as: Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0125937
Submitted: 14 September 2022 • Accepted: 29 November 2022 • Published Online: 16 December 2022

Syed Farhad Shah, Ali Turab Jafry, Gohar Hussain, et al.

Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0125937 16, 064106

© 2022 Author(s).
 Biomicrofluidics ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf

A passive and programmable 3D paper-based

microfluidic pump for variable flow microfluidic
applications
Cite as: Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937
Submitted: 14 September 2022 · Accepted: 29 November 2022 · View Online Export Citation CrossMark
Published Online: 16 December 2022

Syed Farhad Shah,1 Ali Turab Jafry,1,a) Gohar Hussain,1 Ali Hussain Kazim,2 and Mubashar Ali1

AFFILIATIONS
1
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology, Topi 23640, Pakistan
2
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore, Pakistan

a)
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: ali.turab@giki.edu.pk

ABSTRACT
Paper has attracted significant attention recently as a microfluidic component and platform, especially in passive pumping devices due to its
porous and uniform absorbing nature. Many investigations on 1D and 2D fluid flows were carried out. However, no experimental work has
been reported on the three-dimensional effect in porous geometry to improve pumping characteristics in microchannels. Therefore, in this
study, the fluid flow in 3D paper-based passive pumps was investigated in microchannels using cylindrical pumps. The effect of pump diam-
eter, porosity, and programmability was investigated to achieve desired flow variations. The results indicated that the flow rate of water
increased with an increase in the diameter and porosity of paper pumps. Maximum flow rates achieved for 14 mm diameter pumps of 0.5
and 0.7 porosities were 5.29 mm3/s (317.4 μl/min) and 6.97 mm3/s (418.2 μl/min), respectively. The total volume of fluid imbibition ranged
between 266 and 567 μl for 8 and 14 mm diameter pumps, respectively. Moreover, 3D passive pumps can transport larger volumes of liquid
with an improved flow rate, programmability, and control, in addition to being inexpensive and simple to design and fabricate. Most impor-
tantly, a single 3D paper pump showed an increasing, decreasing, and constant flow rate all in a single microchannel. With these benefits,
the passive pumps can further improve the pumping characteristics of microfluidic platforms enabling a cost effective and programmable
point-of-care diagnostic device.

Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0125937

I. INTRODUCTION valveless (diffuser) micropumps.6 However, all these active

Microfluidics integrates microfabrication techniques with
chemistry and biology and has been growing rapidly since the early
1990s.1 Since then, the miniaturization of fluid handling and fluid
analysis is a promising area in biological sciences and analytical
chemistry resulting in lightweight and tiny microfluidic devices
suitable for portable applications such as point-of-care (POC) diag-
nosis. Among their various components, a micropump is responsi-
ble for essential flow function to move the fluid from one place to
another.
Micropumps are mainly classified into active and passive
pumping methods based on their external power requirements.2
Active micropumps include syringe pumps, diaphragm micro-
pumps, magneto-hydrodynamic micropumps,3 and electroos-
motic.4 Diaphragm micropumps are classified as check-valve5 and
pumping devices face certain limitations in real world applications.
These micropumps often raise the overall cost of the system while
also making miniaturization challenging.7,8 Complex circuitry of
such pumps, along with their constant external power require-
ments, makes them unsuited for point-of-care applications. The
substrates used in traditional microfluidic devices are still regarded
to be expensive, notably for single-use devices. As the market for
biodegradable on-chip diagnostic devices grows, there is an increas-
ing demand to replace existing substrates with inexpensive, light-
weight, and environmentally benign materials.
As an alternative to active micropumps, passive pumping
methods are proposed. Passive pumps do not require any external
power source. These pumps include capillary,9 surface tension,10
evaporation,11 and osmotic pressure-based pumps.12 Benefits of

Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937 16, 064106-1

Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing
 Biomicrofluidics
these devices include avoidance of an active control system, simple
fabrication, easy fluidic manipulation, and no external power
requirements. Their limitations are application specific and are
usually one-time use devices.
The use of paper as a substrate in these passive devices makes
them unique among other microfluidic platforms. In everyday
living, paper is the most extensively used, cheapest, and environ-
ment friendly material. It is lightweight, thin, hydrophilic, and flex-
ible, making it ideal for a range of applications. The microstructure
of the paper is made up of randomly interwoven cellulose fibers
that provide abundant channels and pores at micro- and nano-
scale.13,14 Capillary force drives fluids within the paper porous
structure, and therefore, no external pump is required to control
the flow, allowing the device’s size and cost to be reduced to meet
the real-world applications.
The literature on paper-based microfluidic pumping has
reported the capillary-based transport of liquid in rectangular, cir-
cular, triangular, rectangular combined with fan shape, and various
other shapes of paper pumps.15 Moreover, the fluid flow based on
direction has been investigated in which a one-dimensional16,17 or
two-dimensional18 fluid flow analysis was presented. Experimental
models for the 3D fluid flow have been performed by stacking or
folding (origami technique) different paper sheets one above the
other.19
Flow patterns that deviate from the Lucas–Washburn model
can also be generated by altering the paper shape. Mendez et al.
highlighted quasi-linear flow patterns on porous membranes using
distinct fan-shaped outlets.20 Cummins et al. devised a modular
“hydraulic battery” that attaches to the outlet of a microchannel
and pumps fluid at accurate flow rates.21 The use of kirigami and
quilling to create different fluid channels in paper is another recent
development.22
Attempts to accelerate the flow of fluid in paper channels have
involved moving the fluid outside of the paper, where it can flow
faster.23 Sandwiching the paper between polymer films is another
method.24,25 Alternatively, two paper strips can be sandwiched
between a hollow layer of a double-sided tape to create two-ply
channels in paper, which substantially lower flow resistance.26,27
For faster-wicking channels, certain areas of the paper are removed
to generate macro-capillaries for the fluid to flow.28 One method to
accelerate the fluid flow is to etch grooves into the paper chan-
nels.29 Fluid will bypass the paper and flow more rapidly owing to
the grooves.30 The use of tape to seal the channels enhances
wicking speeds even further.31 Dosso et al. presented a self-powered
2D paper pump with a wide range of flow rates from 0.07 to
30 μl/min as well as volume of fluid (0.5 up to 150 μl) that can be
imbibed.32
However, the proposed pumps offer limitations to the flow
rate and its control, and only a minute sample volume of liquid can
be transported. Most importantly, the increase in the flow rate
during fluid imbibition is difficult to achieve in passive paper-based
pumps. The reported 1D or 2D paper pumps in literature can only
achieve decreasing or consistent flow rates. Therefore, exploration
of devices to transport large sample volume of liquid with
improved flow rates is still in progress. To achieve an equipment-
free and fully functional microfluidic device, it is important to
attain a variable flow rate as well as maintain a consistent flow rate
Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937
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ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf
on demand. We observed that previous pumping technologies
lacked the variable flow rate in a simple and affordable passive
pumping device. Due to the high surface to volume area of 2D as
well as 3D stacked devices, evaporation problems may occur
depending on the surrounding conditions. Furthermore, paper is a
material that is prone to tearing and folding, and stability of these
devices is a critical factor to consider.
Therefore, in this study, we have developed a three-
dimensional paper-based pump to control and program the fluid
flow in a microfluidic channel. Desired pumping flow rate can be
achieved in the form of a continuous 3D structure unlike stacked
pumps. These pumps may enhance the flow rate and its control
and allow larger sample volumes of liquid to be absorbed. 3D cylin-
drical paper structure is compact; hence, it is not susceptible to
tearing and folding. Moreover, evaporation problems may be
reduced by using 3D pumps as the surface-to-volume area is
decreased. Additionally, 3D paper-based microfluidic devices are
more desirable than conventional 2D and lateral-flow devices since
they allow more assays on small area. The novel 3D passive
pumping will allow low-cost, high-performance point-of-care diag-
nostic devices with enhanced analytical capabilities and offer a
promising platform for researchers working toward an efficient
miniaturized platform for point-of-care (POC) diagnostic applica-
tions. Moreover, the proposed pump allows traditional microfluidic
devices to meet the “ASSURED” criteria (i.e., affordable, sensitive,
specific, user-friendly, rapid and robust, equipment-free, deliver to
the users who need them) set by the World Health Organization.33
This will help them achieve commercialization of any miniaturized
platform by enhancing user acceptance and deliverability of micro-
fluidic systems.
II. MATERIALS AND METHODS
A. Materials
The materials purchased locally for fabricating the microflui-
dic device are transparent acrylic sheets (5 and 7.5 mm thickness),
a double-sided pressure adhesive sheet (180 μm thickness), and a
plastic covering (100 μm thickness). Whatman filter paper grade-1
was purchased from Merck Darmstadt, Germany. Distilled water
was used as the pumping fluid in the microchannel. The fabrication
process consists of two independent units. The microfluidic paper-
based setup involved fabrication of a microchannel to provide path
for fluid flow and development of a passive pumping device in the
form of a paper-based pump. Both these units were integrated
together to complete the experimental setup.
B. 3D paper pump
The 3D paper pump was developed in the form of a continu-
ous porous structure. Whatman filter paper grade 1 was cut into
smaller pieces and blended with water using Deuron Power
Blender (GL-105 350 W). Circular, hollow molds (cartridges) of
acrylic were cut with CO2 laser engraving/cutting machine
(WR-4040 50 W). Molds were cut initially from the 7.5 mm acrylic
sheet in hollow circles of inner diameter of 8, 10, 12, and 14 mm
and then stacked one above the other vertically. The bottom sieved
plate was made from the same acrylic sheet with cut out holes in it
16, 064106-2
 Biomicrofluidics
to let the water out. This was joined tightly by the paper tape at the
bottom to form a continuous cylindrical column, hence forming a
mold assembly (Figs. S1 and S2 in the supplementary material).
The solution from the blender was poured into these cylindrical
molds with the sieves on one end to filter out excess water. After
drying of paper in an oven (Drawell DHG9030A) at 80 °C for 4 h,
the molds were removed, and the 3D cylindrical paper-based
pumps were ready. The 3D paper pumps with diameters of 8, 10,
12, and 14 mm were developed using the cylindrical molds. All the
cylindrical paper pumps had the same height of 15 mm with geo-
metric volume of 754, 1178, 1696, and 2310 mm3. Considering
their porosity, the pumps of 0.5 porosity have void volumes of 377,
589, 848, and 1155 mm3, respectively, for 8–14 mm diameters,
respectively. Similarly, the pumps of 0.7 porosity have void volumes
of 528, 825, 1187, and 1617 mm3, respectively.
C. Variable porosity
Porosity, also known as void fraction, is a measure of a materi-
al’s empty spaces and is expressed as the fraction of the pore
volume to the total volume (dimensionless ratio). Its value ranges
from 0 to 1. To change the porosity of the 3D pump, the mass of
the paper pulp was weighed and increased during fabrication. The
pulp was sieved with a slightly higher pressure from the top of the
cylindrical mold to enhance the structural density of the fibers.
Imbibition method was used to determine the porosity of the 3D
paper pump by using SHIMADZU AX200 Weighing Balance. The
mass of dry paper pump was initially determined. Then, the pump
was inserted in a flat plate containing water at a small height. After
the pump was completely filled with water, the saturated pump was
weighed again. Imbibed fluid volume was determined, and as a
result, the porosity of the sample was calculated by dividing this
imbibed volume, which represented the void volume of the pump
to the geometric total volume.
FIG. 1. Fabrication process of cylindrical 3D paper-based pump.
Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937
Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing
ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf
The sequence of steps followed for the development of 3D
paper-based pumps is summarized in Fig. 1. Various 3D paper-
based pumps of different sizes with two porosities of 0.5 and 0.7
were developed and tested to examine the fluid flow control in the
microchannel based on pump diameter, programmability, and
porosity.
D. Microfluidic channel
A microfluidic platform was fabricated by first stacking two
180 μm thick double-sided pressure adhesive sheets making a total
thickness of 360 μm. The microchannel pattern was then cut with
this sheet using a 50 W CO2 laser cutting/engraving machine. The
serpentine microfluidic channel had a total length of 800 mm with
cross-sectional dimensions of 2 × 0.36 mm2 (width × height). The
patterned sheet was sandwiched between an acrylic sheet (5 mm
thickness) and a plastic covering (100 μm thickness) to form a
complete microfluidic platform. The acrylic sheet had inlet and
outlet cylindrical holes cut into it for the fluid flow. An exploded
view of the microfluidic platform integrated with a 3D paper-based
pump is shown in Fig. 2. The inset shows the 3D flow regime from
the outlet hole. This outlet hole is made to a smaller size so that
the fluid entering into the cylindrical structure from the center of
its base achieves the 3D flow effect in the form of a spherical
meniscus up to its diameter. The fabricated microfluidic channel
and the 3D paper-based passive pump are shown in Fig. 2(b).
E. Flow rate analysis
Initially, distilled water was injected into the microchannel by
a syringe connected to the inlet port (Sec. III) and was filled all the
way to the outlet port (Sec. IV) as shown in Fig. 2. The syringe was
then disconnected, and the 3D paper pump was placed at the
outlet of the microchannel at which point the liquid came into
16, 064106-3
 Biomicrofluidics
FIG. 2. (a) Exploded view of microchannel fabricated in adhesive sheet sand-
wiched between acrylic and plastic covering with 3D paper pump at the outlet of
microchannel. (b) The fabricated microfluidic platform with the passive 3D
paper-based pump placed at the outlet.
contact with the passive pump and started wicking. The outlet of
the channel is confined to a smaller cylindrical hole of 3 mm diam-
eter compared to the diameter of the cylindrical pump as shown in
subset of Fig. 2. This allowed the water to be absorbed due to
FIG. 3. (a) Length–time curve and (b) flow rate of water in a microchannel with 3D cylindrical paper pumps of different diameters and 0.5 porosity.
Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937
Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing
ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf
capillary action from the central zone at the bottom of the cylindri-
cal structure and spread out radially within the porous structure to
flow in a 3D space. The experimental setup was designed in such a
way to make sure that fluid imbibing into paper pumps flows in all
directions. The meniscus was tracked from the inlet port to deter-
mine the fluid velocity and obtain the flow rate. The experiments
were recorded using a smartphone camera with a reference scale
placed close to the microchannel. The video files were fragmented
into images based on appropriate time intervals and these images
were analyzed in ImageJ software to determine the length covered
by the fluid meniscus.
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
A. Flow rate control based on pump diameter
The 3D paper pumps with diameters of 8, 10, 12, and 14 mm
for porosities of 0.5 and 0.7 were developed to investigate the effect
of pump diameter on the fluid flow in a microchannel. Figure 3
shows the imbibition length and velocity curves by water in the
microchannel with time for a pump porosity of 0.5. The results
indicate that initially the flow rate was higher for all diameters, as
depicted by the higher gradient of length against time. This is
attributed to the three-dimensional flow within the cylindrical
structure. As the liquid meniscus rises in the spherical radial direc-
tion, the surface area is continuously increasing, leading to a
greater number of capillaries and, therefore, higher pumping force.
The flow graphs also depict an increasing flow rate with increasing
diameter, since a larger number of capillaries would allow more
pumping power leading to higher flow velocities.
However, once the spherical liquid meniscus encounters the
cylindrical wall, it will enter into a transition zone (3D to 1D flow
regime). Here, the flow gradient started to decrease with smaller
diameters showing the early sign of going into a transition zone
16, 064106-4
 Biomicrofluidics
and eventually following the Lucas–Washburn regime of the 1D
flow in the cylindrical height direction. At this moment, the liquid
front has lesser and constant available surface area compared to its
start, which resulted in reduced flow velocity due to viscous effects
as the flow progressed. Therefore, with an increase in the diameter
of the pump, the flow rate increased, and the microfluidic channel
length will be completed in a shorter time.
In a 2D flow, the higher number of capillaries and viscous
effects nearly cancel out, causing a constant flow rate. However, for
the 3D flow, an additional height factor increased the number of
capillaries. Therefore, as shown in our results, it led to an increase
in the flow rate not seen before in paper-based microfluidic
devices. The maximum flow rate achieved with an 8 mm pump was
2.95 mm3/s and for 10 mm diameter was 3.73 mm3/s.
The available surface area for the fluid flow increased for 12
and 14 mm diameter pumps, leading to higher flow rates. These
higher flow rates exhibited 3D fluid flow behavior as described
earlier throughout the microchannel length, which caused flow rate
vs time curves for both pumps to increase rapidly at the latter part
of the curves. Maximum flow rates with 12 and 14 mm diameter
pumps were 4.32 and 5.29 mm3/s, respectively.
Similarly, four cylindrical 3D paper pumps of 8, 10, 12, and
14 mm diameters with a porosity of 0.7 were developed and inves-
tigated for the effect of pump diameter and porosity on the fluid
flow rate. As seen in Fig. 4, the flow results indicated similar
trends to those of 0.5 porosity pumps. The flow rate for all pumps
was initially higher, as illustrated by the higher gradient of length
against time attributed to the 3D flow regime within the cylindri-
cal paper structure. The maximum flow rate achieved with an
8 mm pump was 3.27 mm3/s and with a 10 mm diameter pump
was 3.87 mm3/s. Interestingly, the 10 mm diameter had a nearly
constant flow rate curve. The maximum flow rates achieved with
12 and 14 mm pumps were 5.86 and 6.97 mm3/s, respectively.
FIG. 4. (a) Length–time curve and (b) flow rate of water in the microchannel by 3D paper pumps of different diameters and 0.7 porosity.
Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937
Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing
ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf
Hence, by increasing the porosity of the paper pump, we observed
an increase in the flow rate due to larger available pore volume
for better fluid imbibition within the regime of the capillary-based
flow.
For the total volume of fluid imbibed, the 8 mm diameter
pump showed the range of 266 and 403 mm3 for 0.5 and 0.7 poros-
ities, respectively. Larger the diameter, the more the amount of
fluid volume pumped. Hence, the 14 mm diameter pump imbibed
565–567 mm3 for 0.5 and 0.7 porosities, respectively.
B. Programmable pump
The flow rate of the fluid moving in a microchannel can be
adjusted by changing the geometry of a single, continuous
porous structure (paper pump). A change in the geometry can
result in the development of a single pump that can adjust the
flow rate (program) for desired pumping requirements. Two
cylindrical 3D programmable paper-based pumps of variable
cross section were developed to investigate the effect of pump
geometry on its pumping performance. These pumps had the
same top and bottom regions with a narrow neck region of
smaller cross section in the middle. The pump diameters were
10-5-10 mm and 14-8-14 mm in the top-middle-bottom regions,
respectively. The middle neck region was expected to slow the
flow rate of fluid in the microchannel based on its cross section
area.
Figure 5(a) compares the length of the microchannel covered
by water with respect to time for uniform and variable cross
section pumps of fixed porosity of 0.7. A pump with a uniform
cross section has a continuous porous structure of 10 mm in diam-
eter, whereas a pump with a variable cross section has a smaller
channel in the middle. The results showed that initially similar
length-time gradients were observed for both pumps due to their
16, 064106-5
 Biomicrofluidics
FIG. 5. (a) Length–time curve and (b) flow rate of water flowing in the microchannel by 3D paper pumps of uniform cross section of 10 mm and variable cross section of
10-5-10 mm.
same sized bottom region. However, soon after, both curves drifted
apart. The middle narrow region of the programmable pump
reduced fluid imbibition, given the smaller surface area for the
liquid front. The fluid took longer to complete the microchannel
length for the variable cross section programmable pump. Hence,
by changing its geometry, the pumping characteristics can be
designed.
For the uniform cross section, the flow rate of water through
the microfluidic channel increased initially until it reached its
maximum value, and then it became constant. The first portion of
the curve is attributed to the 3D effect of the paper pump as dis-
cussed earlier. The second portion of the curve (a nearly constant
value) may be attributed to the 2D fluid flow. This is due to the
balancing of forces of capillary (two-dimensional surface area) and
the viscous effects, causing a linear trend. The flow rate of a vari-
able cross section pump can also be partitioned into two segments:
one for the small initial time interval in which the flow rate
increased following 3D fluid flow behavior (similar to a uniform
cross section pump) and the other one is the large portion of the
curve in which the flow rate was constantly decreasing following
the traditional Lucas–Washburn model of the 1D fluid flow. This is
since the middle neck region of the programmable pump caused
the fluid to pass through a smaller cross-sectional area, hence limit-
ing its 3D effect to only the 1D flow. With the lesser available
surface area and higher viscous forces, it caused the fluid to move
slowly.
In order to further investigate the effect of pump programma-
bility, Fig. 6(a) compares the length of the microchannel covered
by water with respect to time for uniform and variable cross
section pumps of fixed porosity of 0.5. A pump with a uniform
cross section was 14 mm in diameter, whereas a pump with a vari-
able cross section was 14-8-14 mm in diameter. It was found that
Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937
Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing
ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf
initially similar length-to-time gradients were observed for both
pumps due to similar geometries. For the uniform cross section
pump, a constantly increasing flow rate curve was observed resem-
bling 3D fluid flow behavior.
Interestingly, the flow rate of the variable cross section pump
showed a constant flow rate. Initially, for a short time interval, its
flow rate increased following 3D fluid flow behavior (similar to a
uniform cross section pump); however, it slowly decreased and
remained nearly constant throughout. This is because the middle
narrow region of the programmable pump caused the fluid to be
imbibed slowly given the smaller surface area for the liquid front.
This caused the fluid to move slowly. In the latter part of the curve,
the flow rate started to increase once again. This happened due to
the higher available surface area for the liquid front in the top
region. Therefore, it is evident that by changing the geometry of
the pump, the flow rate of the fluid moving in a microchannel can
be modulated and programmed.
In comparison, a thread-based passive pump relies on the cap-
illary flow and evaporation of liquid to allow a consistent, low volu-
metric flow rates (0.2–1 μl/min) for long duration tests such as 24 h
for cell culture experiments.34 Compared to this, our 3D pump is
designed for short duration, rapid testing where the test requires
variable flow velocity (increasing, decreasing, or constant flow)
depending upon how much exposure is needed to the reagent
when flowing through certain channel locations. In addition to
flow rate variation, the volume of the fluid imbibed is in the range
of 150–400 μl/min depending upon pump size and working solely
on the capillary flow with minimal evaporation phenomenon.
It was shown that the flow rate of a 14-8-14 mm pump is
nearly constant in the middle, and then a small increase was
observed in the latter part of the flow rate against the time curve.
The same behavior cannot be seen for the 10-5-10 mm pump,
16, 064106-6
 Biomicrofluidics
FIG. 6. (a) Length–time curve and (b) flow rate of water flowing in the microchannel by 3D paper pumps of uniform cross section of 10 mm and variable cross section of
14-8-1 mm.
however, in which the flow rate decreased throughout the curve.
The reason behind it was that the available surface area for the
14-8-14 mm pump is larger than the 10-5-10 mm pump. Therefore,
when the fluid reached the top segment of a 14-8-14 mm pump,
part of its bottom and top segment boundaries was still dry, which
provided a stronger capillary pull for the liquid front to flow at a
faster rate. In a 10-5-10 mm pump, when the fluid reached the top
segment, the bottom and middle segments are already saturated, and
liquid already absorbed in the paper pumps reduced the capillary
pull for the liquid front that is yet to be imbibed, and hence, a
decreased capillary pull caused a decreasing flow rate.
C. Flow rate control based on pump porosity
Figure 7(a) shows the effect of pumping on the flow rate of
water for an 8 mm diameter pump with different porosity values of
0.5 and 0.7. For the low porosity pump, the flow rate of the fluid
moving through the microchannel decreased with respect to time,
whereas the flow rate of the fluid for the higher porosity pump can
be partitioned into two segments. For some initial time, the flow
rate of water increased due to the 3D fluid flow in the pump but
started to decrease afterward, resembling the 1D vertical flow.
Available pore volume had increased for the higher porosity pump,
causing high capillary force for water to flow at a higher rate. The
maximum flow rates achieved with 0.5 and 0.7 porosities were 2.95
and 3.27 mm3/s, respectively. Hence, the fluid flow rate increased
with an increase in the pump porosity.
In order to further investigate the effect of porosity on the
pumping flow rate, similar experiments were repeated for 10, 12,
and 14 mm diameters with porosities of 0.5 and 0.7. For the 10 mm
pump with 0.7 porosity value, the flow rate remained nearly
Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937
Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing
ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf
constant with respect to time, whereas for the low porosity pump,
it increased due to the 3D effect and then decreased afterward.
The available pore volume had increased for the higher porosity
pump, causing a greater volume of fluid to be imbibed with higher
velocity. For the lower porosity, the fluid covered the cylindrical
diameter quickly and entered into the 1D flow regime, and hence,
the decrease in flow velocity was observed. The maximum flow rates
achieved with 0.5 and 0.7 porosities were 3.44 and 3.87 mm3/s.
For the 12 and 14 mm pumps in Figs. 7(c) and 7(d), we
observed that as the available surface area had increased further
for both, it led to higher flow rates. These higher flow rates exhib-
ited 3D fluid flow behavior throughout the microchannel length.
Moreover, the 0.7 porosity pump had a higher flow rate curve
than the 0.5 porosity pump, as illustrated. The maximum flow
rates achieved with 0.5 and 0.7 porosity pumps of 12 mm diame-
ter were 4.32 and 5.86 mm3/s and for 14 mm diameter were
5.29 mm3/s (317.4 μl/min) and 6.97 mm3/s (418.2 μl/min), respec-
tively. Hence, flow variation as well as the effect on the volume
absorbed compared to the available surface area is evident from
changing the pump porosity.
The inference of this discussion is that the flow rate of water
flowing through the microfluidic serpentine channel increased with
an increase in the diameter (geometry) and porosity of the paper
pumps. Moreover, these pumps can be programmed to adjust
the flow rate of the fluid moving in the microchannel during the
pumping process. Hence, the proposed 3D pump overcomes the
limitations of 1D or 2D paper pumps by achieving a variable as
well as consistent flow rate on demand. More importantly, the
same pump can also be used for imbibing small volume of fluid in
the microchannel by simply further miniaturizing the microchan-
nel and limiting the length of channel according to the specific
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 Biomicrofluidics
FIG. 7. Flow rate of water in a microchannel by (a) 8, (b) 10, (c) 12, and (d) 14 mm diameter cylindrical pumps with porosities of 0.5 and 0.7.
protocols required for the bio-assay making it a viable choice for
point-of-care devices.
IV. CONCLUSION AND FUTURE OUTLOOK
A cylindrical 3D paper-based pump was developed for a
microfluidic channel to experimentally investigate the effect of
paper pumping on the flow rate. This effect was investigated based
on the pump diameter (geometry), porosity, and programmability.
The maximum flow rates achieved for a porosity of 0.5 with 8, 10,
12, and 14 mm pumps were 2.95, 3.44, 4.32, and 5.29 mm3/s,
respectively. By changing the porosity to 0.7, the maximum flow
rate increased for 8, 10, 12, and 14 mm pumps to 3.27, 3.87, 5.86,
Biomicrofluidics 16, 064106 (2022); doi: 10.1063/5.0125937
Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing
ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf
and 6.97 mm3/s, respectively. Most importantly, we observed an
increase in flow velocity by a 3D fluid flow effect in a porous
medium using a cylindrical structure. The limitations to the extent
of the 3D flow regime were determined, and it was observed that
this effect correlated with an increase in diameter.
Finally, two cylindrical 3D programmable paper-based pumps
of variable cross section (10-5-10 and 14-8-14 mm in diameters)
were investigated. It was concluded that the flow rate of fluid can
be programmed to achieve variable flow velocity by altering the
pump geometry. Since these pumps can simultaneously achieve
increasing, decreasing, and constant flow velocity using only a
simple geometry and different flow regimes, we believe they will be
extremely beneficial for point-of-care technology development for
16, 064106-8
 Biomicrofluidics ARTICLE scitation.org/journal/bmf

5
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14
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Mater. 30(51), 1801588 (2018).
The authors have no conflicts to disclose. 15
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A. T. Jafry, H. Lim, W.-K. Sung, and J. Lee, Microfluid. Nanofluidics 21(3), 57
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Methodology (equal); Writing – original draft (lead). Ali Turab 19
J. Park and J.-K. Park, Sens. Actuators, B 246, 1049–1055 (2017).
Jafry: Conceptualization (lead); Methodology (supporting); Project 20
S. Mendez, E. M. Fenton, G. R. Gallegos, D. N. Petsev, S. S. Sibbett,
administration (equal); Supervision (lead); Writing – review & H. A. Stone, Y. Zhang, and G. P. López, Langmuir 26(2), 1380–1385 (2010).
21
editing (lead). Gohar Hussain: Data curation (equal); Investigation B. M. Cummins, R. Chinthapatla, B. Lenin, F. S. Ligler, and G. M. Walker,
(supporting); Methodology (supporting). Ali Hussain Kazim: Technology 05(01), 21–30 (2017).
22
Conceptualization (supporting); Writing – review & editing (sup- 23
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Visualization (supporting). 24
E. T. S. G. da Silva, M. Santhiago, F. R. de Souza, W. K. T. Coltro, and
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 25
H. H. Cho, S. J. Kim, A. T. Jafry, B. Lee, J. H. Heo, S. Yoon, S. H. Jeong,
We appreciate the support provided by the Start-Up Research S.-I. Kang, J. H. Lee, and J. Lee, Part. Part. Syst. Charact. 36(6), 1800483 (2019).
26
C. K. Camplisson, K. M. Schilling, W. L. Pedrotti, H. A. Stone, and
Grant Program (No. SRGP-2363) and Technology Transfer
A. W. Martinez, Lab Chip 15(23), 4461–4466 (2015).
Support Fund (No. TTSF-74) funded by the Higher Education 27
R. B. Channon, M. P. Nguyen, A. G. Scorzelli, E. M. Henry, J. Volckens,
Commission (HEC) of Pakistan. D. S. Dandy, and C. S. Henry, Lab Chip 18(5), 793–802 (2018).
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The data that support the findings of this study are available
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