JP7022410B2 - Fluid treatment system, injection vessel and recovery vessel - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a fluid treatment system in which an injected fluid or the like is reacted using, for example, a microfluidic device, and an injection container and a recovery container used in the fluid treatment system.

A fluid processing system equipped with a microfluidic device manufactured using microfabrication technology has been put into practical use, and great expectations are placed on it in fields such as life science and chemical / biochemical analysis. As a fluid processing system equipped with a microfluidic device, a pump such as an electric syringe pump is used to inject a fluid into the microfluidic device while controlling the flow rate, and the injected fluid is reacted to improve the reaction efficiency. It has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In addition, by applying micromachining technology, fluid processing required for chemical and biochemical analysis can be integrated into a compact and lightweight system, so microfluidic devices can be applied to various outdoor analyzes. Is also expected. For example, it has been proposed to apply a fluid treatment system equipped with a microfluidic device to quantitative analysis of metal ion concentration and indicator substance of microbial biomass in a marine field (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-21265 Tatsuhiro Fukuba, Kohei Hanatani, Teruo Fujii, "On-site measurement system applying microfluidic device technology", Optical Alliance, Nippon Kogyo Shuppan, Vol. 26, No. 5 (2015), pp. 7-11

In the fluid processing system described in Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 1, it is necessary to supply electric power for driving a pump from the outside. Therefore, a large-capacity battery is required when the fluid processing system is to be continuously operated for a long period of time outdoors or the like. In addition, the fluid processing system cannot be used in situations where the electric power for driving the pump cannot be secured.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to obtain a fluid processing system capable of injecting a fluid even in a situation where the electric power for driving a pump cannot be secured. With the goal.

The fluid treatment system according to the embodiment of the present invention relates to an injection container for injecting the stored infusion fluid, an infusion fluid injected from the infusion container, and an external fluid taken in from the outside of the fluid treatment system. The injection container is provided with a processing unit for performing a predetermined treatment and a recovery container for collecting the treated fluid processed by the processing unit. At least a part of the injection container is formed of an elastic body and is stored by shrinking. The recovery container holds the treated fluid, including an injection side storage unit that discharges the injection fluid and an injection amount control unit that controls the injection amount of the injection container by controlling the flow rate of the injection fluid. A holding part to be used, and a collecting side storage part provided in the holding part, at least a part of which is formed of an elastic body, discharges the stored recovery fluid by contracting, and sucks the treated fluid into the holding part. , A recovery amount control unit that controls the recovery amount of the recovery container by controlling the flow rate of the recovery fluid, and the recovery amount of the recovery container is set to be higher than the injection amount of the injection container. The external fluid is taken into the fluid treatment system according to the difference between the recovery amount of the recovery container and the injection amount of the injection container.

At this time, the processing unit may include a microfluidic device. The infusion container may also be integrated with the microfluidic device. Further, the injection container may include a plurality of sets of an injection side storage unit and an injection amount control unit. In addition, the injection container contains a plurality of injection-side storage units in which each of a cell lysis reagent for measuring adenosine triphosphate, a luminescent reagent, and a standard solution is stored as an injection fluid, and the treatment unit is a luciferin-luciferase. It may include a microfluidic device in which a microchannel capable of reaction is formed.

According to the fluid treatment system according to the embodiment of the present invention, the fluid can be injected even in a situation where the electric power for driving the pump cannot be secured.

It is a block diagram which shows the fluid processing system which concerns on one Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the injection container which concerns on one Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the microfluidic device which concerns on one Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the collection container which concerns on one Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the injection container and the microfluidic device which concerns on one Embodiment.

Hereinafter, the fluid treatment system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, and the same or corresponding portions in the drawings will be described with the same reference numerals. In the following embodiment, a case of measuring adenosine triphosphate (ATP: adenosine triphosphate) derived from microorganisms in seawater using a fluid treatment system put into seawater will be described as an example.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a fluid treatment system according to an embodiment. In FIG. 1, the fluid treatment system 100 includes an injection container 10, a seawater intake unit 20, a treatment unit 30, and a recovery container 40.

The injection container 10 injects the stored injecting fluid. The seawater intake unit 20 takes in seawater as an external fluid from the outside of the fluid treatment system 100. The treatment unit 30 performs a predetermined treatment on the injection fluid injected from the injection container 10 and the seawater taken in from the seawater intake unit 20. The collection container 40 collects the treated fluid treated by the treatment unit 30.

The injection container 10 includes injection side storage units 11a to 11e and injection amount control units 12a to 12e. That is, the injection container 10 includes a plurality of sets (here, 5 sets) of the injection side storage unit 11 and the injection amount control unit 12.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an injection container according to an embodiment. In FIG. 2, the injection container 10 includes an injection side storage unit 11, an injection amount control unit 12, a tube 13, and a tube 14.

The injection side storage portion 11 is formed of an elastic body such as silicone rubber or isoprene rubber at least in part so as to have an elliptical cross section. The injection side storage unit 11 is designed to store the injection fluid S1 inside, and when contracted by an elastic force, a pressure P1 is applied to the injection fluid S1 and the stored injection fluid S1 is tubed. Discharge to 13. The injection fluid S1 stored in the injection side storage unit 11 is, for example, a cytolytic reagent, a luminescent reagent, and a standard solution for measuring ATP.

Further, the injection side storage unit 11 has a coating on the inner surface in contact with the injection fluid S1 so that the injection side storage unit 11 is not invaded by the injection fluid S1 and has a gas barrier property.

The tube 13 fluidly communicates the injection side storage unit 11 and the injection amount control unit 12, and injects the injection fluid S1 discharged from the injection side storage unit 11 as shown by an arrow F1 in FIG. It is designed to be sent to the quantity control unit 12. The tube 13 is made of an elastic body such as silicone rubber or isoprene rubber, or a thermoplastic resin.

The injection amount control unit 12 is formed of a hollow fiber (orifice) made of glass, polyvinyl chloride (PVC: polyvinyl chloride), ceramics or the like. One end of the injection amount control unit 12 is connected to the tube 13, and the other end is connected to an external device via the tube 14.

The injection amount control unit 12 sets the tube resistance according to the hole diameter (for example, about several tens of micrometers to 100 micrometers) and the length (for example, about 1.5 cm) of the hollow thread, so that the tube resistance can be set from the tube 13. It is provided so that the flow rate of the sent injection fluid S1 can be controlled. That is, the injection amount control unit 12 controls the injection amount of the injection container 10 by controlling the flow rate of the injection fluid S1 discharged from the injection side storage unit 11. Thereby, the injection container 10 can inject a constant amount of the injection fluid S1 over a period of, for example, several weeks to several months. Although pulsation occurs when an electric pump is used, the injection fluid S1 can be injected without pulsation by using the injection side storage unit 11 formed of an elastic body.

The tube 14 fluidly communicates the injection amount control unit 12 and the external device, and sends the injection fluid S1 discharged from the injection amount control unit 12 to the external device. The tube 14 is made of an elastic body such as silicone rubber or isoprene rubber, or a thermoplastic resin.

Returning to FIG. 1, in one embodiment, the injection-side storage unit 11a stores a cytolytic reagent for measuring ATP as an injection fluid. Further, each of the injection side storage portions 11b to 11d stores standard solutions 1 to 3 for measuring ATP as an injection fluid. Further, the injection side storage unit 11e stores a light emitting reagent for measuring ATP as an injection fluid.

The seawater intake unit 20 is, for example, a tube or the like that is fluidly communicated with the treatment unit 30, and is not provided with a pump or the like for sucking seawater.

The treatment unit 30 is fluidly communicated with the injection container 10, the seawater intake unit 20 and the recovery container 40, the injection fluid is injected from the injection container 10, the seawater is taken in from the seawater intake unit 20, and the treated fluid is used. Discharge to the collection container 40.

The processing unit 30 includes a microfluidic device 31 in which a microfluidic channel capable of a luciferin-luciferase (LL: Luciferin-Luciferase) reaction is formed, a reaction promoting unit 32 that promotes the LL reaction, and an LL. It includes a photodetector 33 that detects the light generated in the reaction. In the microfluidic device 31, a microscale flow path or the like is formed on a substrate such as silicon, silicone rubber, or glass by a semiconductor microfabrication technique.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a microfluidic device according to an embodiment. In FIG. 3, the microfluidic device 31 has a first supply port 31a, a second supply port 31b, a cytolysis section 31c, a third supply port 31d, an LL reaction section 31e, and a discharge port 31f. Includes.

The cytolytic reagents and standard solutions 1 to 3 stored in the injection-side storage portions 11a to 11d are supplied to the first supply port 31a. The seawater taken in from the seawater taking-in unit 20 is supplied to the second supply port 31b. In the cytolysis section 31c, microbial cells in seawater are lysed by a cytolytic reagent. The light emitting reagent stored in the injection side storage unit 11e is supplied to the third supply port 31d. In the LL reaction unit 31e, an LL reaction occurs, and light emission corresponding to the ATP concentration in seawater is generated. The treated fluid is discharged from the discharge port 31f.

The reaction promoting unit 32 includes a heater (not shown) and a temperature sensor, and keeps the LL reaction unit 31e at, for example, about 25 degrees Celsius to promote the LL reaction. The photodetector 33 is, for example, a photomultiplier tube (PMT), which converts the light generated in the LL reaction into an electric signal and outputs it. Here, a battery is used to drive the reaction promoting unit 32 and the optical detector 33, but since the power consumption is much smaller than the power for driving the pump, the power required for continuous operation of the fluid processing system 100 is significantly increased. It can be reduced to a small battery and sufficient power can be supplied.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing a collection container according to an embodiment. In FIG. 4, the collection container 40 includes a holding unit 41, a collection side storage unit 42, a collection amount control unit 43, a tube 44, and a tube 45. The holding portion 41 is formed of an inelastic body such as plastic and holds the fluid after treatment.

The recovery side storage portion 42 is formed of an elastic body such as silicone rubber or isoprene rubber at least in part so as to have an elliptical cross section. The recovery side storage unit 42 is designed to store the recovery fluid S2 inside, and when it contracts due to elastic force, pressure P2 is applied to the recovery fluid S2, and the stored recovery fluid S2 is tubed. Discharge to 44. As a result, the collection side storage unit 42 sucks the treated fluid into the holding unit 41. The recovery fluid S2 stored in the recovery side storage unit 42 may be any fluid such as air and water that does not affect the environment.

Further, the recovery side storage section 42 has a coating on the outer surface in contact with the treated fluid so that the recovery side storage section 42 is not invaded by the treated fluid and has a gas barrier property.

The tube 44 fluidly communicates the collection side storage unit 42 and the collection amount control unit 43, and collects the collection fluid S2 discharged from the collection side storage unit 42 as shown by an arrow F2 in FIG. It is designed to be sent to the quantity control unit 43. The tube 44 is made of an elastic body such as silicone rubber or isoprene rubber, or a thermoplastic resin.

The recovery amount control unit 43 is formed of hollow fibers (orifices) such as glass, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and ceramics. One end of the recovery amount control unit 43 is connected to the tube 44, and the other end is connected to the tube 45.

The recovery amount control unit 43 sets the tube resistance based on the hole diameter (for example, about several tens of micrometers to 100 micrometers) and the length (for example, about 1.5 cm) of the hollow thread, thereby setting the tube resistance from the tube 44. The flow rate of the sent recovery fluid S2 can be controlled. That is, the recovery amount control unit 43 controls the recovery amount of the recovery container 40 by controlling the flow rate of the recovery fluid S2 discharged from the recovery side storage unit 42. As a result, the recovery container 40 can recover a certain amount of the treated fluid over a period of, for example, several weeks to several months. Although pulsation occurs when an electric pump is used, the treated fluid can be recovered without pulsation by using the recovery side storage unit 42 formed of an elastic body.

The tube 45 fluidly communicates the recovery amount control unit 43 with the outside of the fluid treatment system 100 so that the recovery fluid S2 discharged from the recovery amount control unit 43 is discharged to the outside of the fluid treatment system 100. It has become. The tube 45 is made of an elastic body such as silicone rubber or isoprene rubber, or a thermoplastic resin.

Here, the recovery amount of the recovery container 40 is set to be higher than the injection amount of the injection container 10. Specifically, for example, the recovery amount of the recovery container 40 is 300 microliters / minute, while the injection amount of the injection container 10 is set to 200 microliters / minute. The breakdown of the injection amount of the injection container 10 is, for example, the injection amount of the injection side storage portions 11a to 11d is 100 microliters / minute, and the injection amount of the injection side storage portions 11e is 100 microliters / minute.

As a result, seawater is taken into the fluid treatment system 100 from the seawater take-in unit 20 at a flow rate of 100 microliters / minute according to the difference between the recovery amount of the recovery container 40 and the injection amount of the injection container 10.

Subsequently, the operation of the fluid treatment system according to the embodiment will be described. First, when the fluid treatment system 100 is put into seawater, seawater is fluid-treated from the seawater intake unit 20 at a constant flow rate according to the difference between the recovery amount of the recovery container 40 and the injection amount of the injection container 10. It is taken in by 100.

Subsequently, in the microfluidic device 31, the cytolytic reagents and standard solutions 1 to 3 stored in each of the injection-side storage units 11a to 11d and the seawater taken in from the seawater uptake unit 20 are mixed, and the cytolysis unit 31c is mixed. Then, the cells of the microorganism in seawater are lysed by the cytolytic reagent.

Next, the fluid in which the cells of the microorganisms in the seawater are dissolved and the luminescent reagent stored in the injection side storage unit 11e are mixed, and the LL reaction occurs in the LL reaction unit 31e, and the LL reaction occurs in the seawater. Light emission is generated according to the ATP concentration. The light generated in the LL reaction is detected by the photodetector 33, converted into an electric signal by the photodetector 33, and output. The fluid after the LL reaction is recovered in the recovery container 40.

As described above, according to the fluid treatment system according to the embodiment, the injection container has at least a part formed of an elastic body and has an injection side storage unit for discharging the fluid for injection stored by contracting. Including an injection amount control unit that controls the injection amount of the injection container by controlling the flow rate of the injection fluid, the recovery container is provided in a holding unit for holding the treated fluid and at least in the holding unit. By controlling the flow rate of the recovery fluid and the recovery side storage section, which is partly formed of an elastic body and discharges the recovered fluid stored by contracting and sucks the treated fluid into the holding section. The collection amount control unit that controls the collection amount of the collection container is included, and the collection amount of the collection container is set to be higher than the injection amount of the injection container, and the external fluid is the collection amount of the collection container and the injection container. It is taken into the fluid treatment system according to the difference from the injection amount of. Therefore, even in a situation where the electric power for driving the pump cannot be secured, the fluid can be injected and the fluid processing system can be used. In addition, it is possible to realize an ultra-low power consumption and contamination-free fluid processing system.

In the fluid treatment system according to the above-described embodiment, the injection container 10 may be integrated with the microfluidic device 31. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an infusion container and a microfluidic device according to an embodiment. In FIG. 5, the injection side storage units 11a and 11b and the injection amount control units 12a and 12b are integrally formed on the microfluidic device 31 formed of the silicone rubber substrate. This makes it possible to prevent contamination and the like when connecting the injection container 10 and the microfluidic device 31.

Further, in the injection side storage portions 11a to 11e shown in FIG. 1, a cell lysis reagent, a luminescent reagent, and a standard solution for measuring ATP are stored in advance as an injection fluid, and integrated with the microfluidic device 31. The ATP measurement kit may be configured by allowing the ATP measurement kit to be configured.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case of measuring adenosine triphosphate derived from a microorganism using a fluid treatment system has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any fluid processing system provided with a processing unit that performs a predetermined treatment on the injecting fluid injected from the injection container and the external fluid taken in from the outside of the fluid processing system. Applying the fluid treatment system according to one embodiment of the present invention to various analyzes in the underwater environment, extraterrestrial environment, deep underground, in vivo, etc., printing field, medical field, pet field such as supply of breeding food, etc. Can be done.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the fluid treatment system 100 including the injection container 10 and the recovery container 40 has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the injection fluid may be injected into the processing unit 30 by using the injection container 10 having a plurality of pairs of the injection side storage unit 11 and the injection amount control unit 12 as a single unit. Further, the recovered fluid treated by the treatment section 30 may be recovered by using the recovery container 40 including the holding section 41, the recovery side storage section 42, and the recovery amount control section 43 as a single unit.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the injection side storage portion 11 has an elliptical cross section, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the injection side storage portion has a bellows shape if at least a part of it is an elastic body. Etc., it may have other shapes.

10 ... Injection container 11, 11a to 11e ... Injection side storage unit 12, 12a to 12e ... Injection amount control unit 13 ... Tube 14 ... Tube 20 ... Seawater intake unit 30 ... Processing unit 31 ... Microfluidic device 31a ... First supply port 31b ... Second supply port 31c ... Cytolysis section 31d ... Third supply port 31e ... Reaction section 31f ... Discharge port 32 ... Reaction promotion section 33 ... Photodetector 40 ... Recovery container 41 ... Holding section 42 ... Recovery side storage section 43 ... Recovery amount control unit 44 ... Tube 45 ... Tube 100 ... Fluid treatment system

Claims (4)

An injection container for injecting the stored injectable fluid and
A processing unit that performs predetermined processing on the injection fluid injected from the injection container and an external fluid taken in from the outside of the fluid processing system.
A recovery container for collecting the treated fluid treated in the treatment section, and a recovery container.
In a fluid processing system equipped with
The injection container is
An injection-side storage unit that discharges the injection fluid that is stored at least in part by being formed of an elastic body and contracting.
An injection amount control unit that controls the injection amount of the injection container by controlling the flow rate of the injection fluid.
Including
The collection container is
A holding portion that holds the treated fluid and
A recovery-side storage section provided in the holding section, at least a part of which is formed of an elastic body, discharges the stored recovery fluid by contracting, and sucks the treated fluid into the holding section.
A recovery amount control unit that controls the recovery amount of the recovery container by controlling the flow rate of the recovery fluid, and a recovery amount control unit.
Including
The recovery amount of the recovery container is set to be higher than the injection amount of the injection container, and the external fluid is the fluid according to the difference between the recovery amount of the recovery container and the injection amount of the injection container. Incorporated into the processing system
The processing unit includes a microfluidic device.
The infusion vessel is integrally formed on the microfluidic device.
Fluid processing system. In the fluid treatment system according to claim 1 ,
The injection container is a fluid processing system including a plurality of pairs of the injection side storage unit and the injection amount control unit. In the fluid treatment system according to claim 2 ,
The injection vessel contains a plurality of injection-side reservoirs in which each of a cytolytic reagent, a luminescent reagent, and a standard solution for measuring adenosine triphosphate is stored as the injection fluid.
The processing unit is a fluid processing system including a microfluidic device in which a microfluidic channel capable of a luciferin-luciferase reaction is formed. An injection container used in a fluid processing system provided with a processing unit that performs a predetermined treatment on a fluid, and injects an injection fluid into the processing unit.
An injection-side storage unit that discharges the injection fluid that is stored at least in part by being formed of an elastic body and contracting.
An injection amount control unit that controls the injection amount of the injection container by controlling the flow rate of the injection fluid.
With multiple pairs of
The processing unit includes a microfluidic device.
The infusion vessel is integrally formed on the microfluidic device.
Injection container.

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