Hi all,

I have recently been looking into Fluorinert by 3M as an option to immerse a microfluidic chip in. The chip is being used to investigate the behavior of red blood cells in the central channel of the chip. On either side of the channel are channels where chemical reactions will take place that will take place. One reaction will generate oxygen and the other will scavenge oxygen. We have to image the oxygen gradients generated in the central channel using fluorescence microscopy. A colleague of ours recomended immersing the chip in fluorinert in order to prevent any oxygen in the environment from permeating into the chip. I have come across articles stating that Fluorinert absorbs oxygen gas in the environment. Can anyone speak to whether Fluorinert is oxygen permeable or impermeable? I have come across articles stating that PMMA or polystyrene can be used with an oil overlay, to protect microfluidic devices from ambient gases, as it is impermeable. Can anyone confirm that PMMA is nonreactive with PDMS chips? Would it be a good option to prevent oxygen permeating into the microfluidic chip? If anyone is aware of any other liquid chemicals that would suit this application, please let me know! Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Brian.