Apparatus for separating particles utilizing engineered acoustic contrast capture particles

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016230168-A1
Application number	US-201615098873-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 14, 2016
Priority date	Apr 9, 2007
Publication date	Aug 11, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

An apparatus for separating particles from a medium includes a capillary defining a flow path therein that is in fluid communication with a medium source. The medium source includes engineered acoustic contrast capture particle having a predetermined acoustic contrast. The apparatus includes a vibration generator that is operable to produce at least one acoustic field within the flow path. The acoustic field produces a force potential minima for positive acoustic contrast particles and a force potential minima for negative acoustic contrast particles in the flow path and drives the engineered acoustic contrast capture particles to either the force potential minima for positive acoustic contrast particles or the force potential minima for negative acoustic contrast particles.

First claim

What is claimed:

1 . A system for refining particles in a medium, comprising:
a conduit defining a flow path therein, the flow path in fluid communication with a medium that includes engineered acoustic contrast capture particles configured to bind to a predetermined bioparticle; and a vibration generator configured to produce an acoustic field within said flow path, the acoustic field being configured to drive engineered acoustic contrast capture particles that are bound to the predetermined bioparticles to one or more force potential minima of the acoustic field.

2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein at least some engineered acoustic contract capture particles have an acoustic contrast that differs from the acoustic contrast of the predetermined bioparticle.

3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the conduit is a capillary.

4 . The system of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the engineered acoustic contrast capture particles have a negative acoustic contrast and wherein the predetermined bioparticle has a positive acoustic contrast.

5 . The system of claim 4 , wherein the at least some engineered acoustic contrast particles have a density/compressibility ratio less than that of the medium.

6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the engineered acoustic contrast capture particles have a positive acoustic contrast.

7 . The system of claim 6 , wherein the at least some engineered acoustic contrast particles have a density/compressibility ratio greater than that of the medium.

8 . The system of claim 3 , wherein the capillary is an inner capillary disposed within an outer capillary, the vibration generator being disposed adjacent the outer capillary.

9 . The system of claim 1 , further comprising a laser beam configured for analysis of the particles in the medium.

10 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the vibration generator is capable of alternately producing a dipole acoustic field and an axisymmetric acoustic field.

11 . A method of refining a particle population, comprising:
in a flow path defined by a conduit, contacting (1) a medium including engineered acoustic contrast capture particles configured to bind to a predetermined bioparticle and (2) a sample comprising bioparticles, the contacting being performed under conditions sufficient to effect binding between at least some of the bioparticles and at least some of the engineered acoustic contrast particles; effecting at least one acoustic field within the flow path; and driving at least some of the engineered acoustic contrast capture particles that are bound to the predetermined bioparticles to one or more force potential minima within the acoustic field.

12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein at least some of the engineered acoustic contract capture particles have an acoustic contrast that differs from the acoustic contrast of the predetermined bioparticle.

13 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the conduit is a capillary.

14 . The method of claim 11 , wherein at least some of the engineered acoustic contrast capture particles have a negative acoustic contrast and wherein the predetermined bioparticle has a positive acoustic contrast.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the at least some of the engineered acoustic contrast particles have a density/compressibility ratio less than that of the medium source.

16 . The method of claim 11 , wherein at least some of the engineered acoustic contrast capture particles have a positive acoustic contrast.

17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the at least some engineered acoustic contrast particles have a density/compressibility ratio greater than that of the medium source.

18 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising analyzing at least some of the bioparticles with a laser beam.

19 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising separating at least some of the engineered acoustic contrast capture particles that are bound to the predetermined bioparticles from the flow path.

20 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising separating bioparticles that are not bound engineered acoustic contrast capture particles from bioparticles that are bound to engineered acoustic contrast capture particles.

Assignees

• Los Alamos Nat Security Llc

Inventors

• Kaduchak Gregory
• Ward Michael D

Classifications

• C12N5/0634

  Cells from the blood or the immune system · CPC title

• C12N13/00 Primary

  Treatment of microorganisms or enzymes with electrical or wave energy, e.g. magnetism, sonic waves · CPC title

• C12M47/04 Primary

  Cell isolation or sorting (purging biological preparations of unwanted cells C12N5/0081, determining the presence or kind of microorganism C12Q1/04) · CPC title

• B03B1/04

  by additives · CPC title

• B01D21/283

  Settling tanks provided with vibrators · CPC title