Computational Design of a Single Heater Convective Polymerase Chain Reaction for Point-of-Care

Recently, researchers have started working to develop polymerase chain reaction (PCR) devices as a means for point-of-care (POC) applications. Among the requirements are portability, affordability, and performing reliably and quickly. Proposed by the present study is a process to design a convective-PCR (CPCR) device with only a single heater. It is assumed that such a design developed using microfluidics and capillary tube should help make a CPCR to be portable and more economical for POC use. One of the challenges is to achieve steadily the prerequisite three temperature zones with a single heater. It is demonstrated that this can be done with the present methodology. The underlying physics of the convection driving the CPCR function is mathematically modeled, then verified by our experimental results. In search of better designs, the following parameters that affect the CPCR performance are considered: the heater's height, and the diameter, the height, and the wall thickness of the capillary tube. A large design space consisting of design candidates is defined by combining the values within the range of each of these parameters. The results of the corresponding design cases are obtained from our mathematical model, and the performance of each case is evaluated by their deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) doubling time. The two best CPCR performing reactors are selected and discussed. It is, therefore, demonstrated that the present methodology is capable of enhancing the CPCR reactor performance with a single heater.