Patent ID: 8057191

Claim:
An electrokinetic micropump comprising a multichannel structure made of electrically non-conducting material and having end-to-end microchannels, the inlets and outlets of the microchannels forming the inlet end and the outlet end of the multichannel structure, each of these ends being adjacent to an electrode section, one of which contains an anodic electrode and the other a cathodic electrode, an ion-exchange membrane being mounted in each of said electrode sections between the electrode mounted therein and the end of the multichannel structure, characterized in that one of the ion-exchange membranes is monopolar, and the other is bipolar, with the type of the monopolar ion-exchange membrane corresponding to the polarity of the adjacent electrode, the bipolar ion-exchange membrane facing the adjacent electrode with its side that corresponds in polarity to said electrode, whereas the ion-exchange membranes divide each electrode section, in which they are arranged, into two chambers, said chambers being situated at one side of each of the ion-exchange membranes communicating with the end of the multichannel structure and being suitable for passing through the pumped liquid, and one of said chambers having an inlet opening for the pumped liquid and the other having an outlet opening for the pumped liquid, and the chambers being situated at the other side of each ion-exchange membrane contain said anodic and cathodic electrode and are suitable for being filled with an auxiliary medium for transfer of electric charges.