Prof Klavs Jensen from Massachusetts Institute of Technology explains how advancements in microfabrication techniques fuel the development of chemical and biological microsystems.
Microfabrication techniques have fueled spectacular advances in the electronic and telecommunications industries, and more recently, in microanalysis chips for chemical and biological applications. These systems promise to transform classical laboratory procedures into integrated systems capable of providing new understanding of fundamental chemical and biological processes as well as rapid, continuous discovery and development of new products with less use of resources and waste generation. Chemical microsystems combine chemical-synthesis-on-a chip and microscale separation to enable multiple synthesis steps, which are further enhanced by information gained from integrating miniaturized sensors and actuators. Biological studies are similarly accelerated by the integration of cell manipulation and biochemical detection. Applications of chemical and biological microsystems are illustrated with case studies drawn from chemical transformations, synthesis and assembly of nanostructures, and cellular manipulation. Emphasis is placed on applications that are enabled by flow systems and are difficult to perform by conventional techniques. Flow chemistry examples include the creation of modular chemical plants for small scale pharmaceutical production. Cellular manipulation is illustrated with microfluidic devices for delivery of macromolecules and nanoparticles to the cytosol. This technique has superior ability to deliver proteins, siRNA, and nanoparticles, while maintaining material functionality and cell viability.
About the speaker
Prof Klavs Jensen received his PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in 1980. He was faculty at the University of Minnesota from 1980 to 1988. He joined Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1989, and is currently Warren K. Lewis Professor and Department Head of Chemical Engineering.
Prof Jensen’s research interests include microsystems for chemical and biological discovery, synthesis and processing. Catalysis, chemical kinetics and transport phenomena are also topics of interest along with development of simulation approaches for reactive chemical and biological systems. He is the co-author of more than 330 journal articles as well as several edited volumes and 30 US patents.
Prof Jensen received numerous awards including the Allan P. Colburn, Charles C. M. Stine, R. H. Wilhelm, and W. H. Walker Awards of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. He is a Member of the US National Academy of Engineering and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.
