Defining Operational Limits of Low-Cost MSLA 3D Printing for Microfluidic Systems: Resin Performance, Cell Compatibility, and Fluid Dynamics
Abstract
Additive manufacturing using low-cost masked stereolithography technology is an attractive option to democratize microfluidic devices fabrication, albeit with limits in spatial resolution, optical transparency, cytotoxicity, and replication that need to be addressed. In this work, five transparent masked stereolithography resins employed in an Anycubic Photon M7 Pro low-cost printer are systematically studied to address the limitations mentioned above. The working route was based on the analysis of the dimensions of negative and positive microfeatures, their transmission spectra, their cytotoxicity, the capability of building internal channels, replicability in PDMS, and validation by computational fluid dynamics simulations with experimental fluid assays. Resolution tests revealed that negative structures resolved less accurately due to subtle resin accumulation during the layer-by-layer printing process. Internal channel fabrication showed a practical lower limit of approximately 500 μm under the printing and postprocessing conditions used in the study, with resin viscosity, printing angle, and drainage behavior strongly influencing channel clearance. The Standard V2 and High Clear resins exhibited the highest printing resolution with microchannels printed in a vertical or almost-vertical position. Regarding thermally cured PDMS replication, the Tough Ultra, ABS-like Pro 2, and Water-Wash were the ones exhibiting the most accurate outcome. From a biological point of view,…
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