Dolomite Microfluidics systems are enabling reliable, reproducible production of monodisperse alginate beads, overcoming the challenges associated with traditional batch techniques. Controlled and reproducible generation of alginate gel beads is crucial for biomedical science and engineering applications that require biologically and chemically inert polymers, such as the encapsulation of drugs or cells. However, this can be difficult to achieve with batch synthesis, which produces large beads with a wide size distribution and minimal control over bead size. The reproducibility and throughput of the technique are also low. Microfluidic synthesis of alginate beads overcomes these difficulties, allowing precise control of bead formation and enabling rapid production of particles with well-defined sizes, shapes and morphologies.

Dolomite Microfluidics offers a range of Single Emulsion Systems for the continuous, reliable and reproducible generation of up to 10,000 monodisperse droplets a second, with real-time process control. Droplets ranging in size from 2 to 200 µm can be synthesized, taking advantage of the systems’ precise control of flow rates and pressures to virtually eliminate errors and wastage. Production can be effortlessly scaled up to as much as a tonne a month – 500,000 droplets a second – using the cost-effective, modular Telos® technology.