Rapid and cost-effective prototyping of acoustofluidic chips using 3D printing, laser cutting, and CNC milling

Acoustofluidic techonolgies enable label-free manipulation and separaiton of particles and cells in microfluidic systems, offering strong potential for biological analysis and bioprocessing applications. However, fabrication of acoustofluidic chips remains costly, particularly for platforms that integrate external fields such as an acoustic field, which require additional components like transducers. To address these challenges, this study compares three rapid and cost-effective fabrication methods, namely 3D printing, laser cutting (LC), and Computer Numerical Control (CNC) milling, for producing acoustofluidic chips compatible with off-the-shelf 2.1 MHz piezoelectric transducers. The chip geometry and the simple fabrication workflow were optimised, along with post-processing strategies, to improve the performance and efficiency of bulk acoustophoresis. Experimental characterization of particle trajectories, supported by numerical simulations, elucidated acoustofluidic behaviour and reduced trial-and-error in chip design. Energy and resource requirements were further assessed to determine suitability for scalable applications. By combining inexpensive equipment with streamlined fabrication and optimization workflows, this approach lowers the entry barrier to acoustofluidic research while enabling rapid, low-cost chip development and facilitating translation toward practical applications. The results provide practical guidelines for selecting appropriate fabrication methods for acoustofluidic chips based on performance and manufacturability considerations.