JP7380252B2 - Method for manufacturing laminate - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a laminate.

For example, microfluidic devices in which sample separation systems, detection systems, etc. are integrated on a small chip are used for purposes such as drug discovery research and high-throughput clinical testing. Such a microchannel device is made by laminating a plurality of plate-shaped plastic members including at least a plastic member in which microchannels are formed, as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-139419 (Patent Document 1). It may be manufactured using In the process of joining laminated plate-shaped plastic members, a method using an adhesive or a method using ultrasonic irradiation is common (paragraphs 0030 and 0039 of Patent Document 1).

However, in the method using an adhesive, there are problems in that the excess tends to protrude into the microchannels, resulting in blockage of the channels and elution of components derived from the adhesive. Furthermore, in the case of ultrasonic bonding, if the temperature rises too much, the channel structure may collapse. For example, if a microchannel device is formed as a laminate of three or more layers, and one of the layers is thicker than the other two, it is possible to bond the thickest layer with the other layers. Because it is necessary to heat the product so that As a result, the channel structure may be collapsed.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-139419

To successfully bond each layer while suitably maintaining the state of the microchannel when manufacturing a laminate having at least three layers in which a microchannel is formed in one layer. is desired.

The method for manufacturing a laminate according to the present invention includes:
It comprises at least three layers, a first layer, a second layer, and a third layer each containing a polymer compound, and the thickness of any one of the first layer, the second layer, and the third layer is A method for manufacturing a laminate, which is thicker than the other two layers and has microchannels formed in the first layer,
a laser bonding step of laser bonding the first layer and the second layer;
an ultrasonic bonding step of ultrasonically bonding the second layer and the third layer;
including.

According to this configuration, the second layer and the third layer can be firmly bonded by ultrasonic bonding. Further, since the first layer and the second layer are bonded by laser bonding, excessive temperature rise of the first layer can be avoided. This makes it possible to avoid inconveniences such as collapse of the microchannels formed in the first layer. In this way, by optimizing the bonding method between the first layer and the second layer and the bonding method between the second layer and the third layer, each layer can be improved while maintaining the state of the microchannels. Can be joined to.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the preferred embodiments described below.

As one aspect,
Preferably, the laser bonding step is performed after the ultrasonic bonding step.

According to this configuration, since laser bonding that can avoid an excessive temperature rise in the first layer is performed later, the state of the microchannel can be more reliably maintained in a suitable state.

As one aspect,
It is preferable that the second layer or the third layer contains a laser light absorber.

According to this configuration, the bonding surface between the first layer and the second layer can be efficiently heated when laser light is irradiated in the laser bonding process. Therefore, laser bonding can be performed satisfactorily.

As one aspect,
The polymer compound contained in the first layer, the second layer, and the third layer is each one of polymethyl (meth)acrylate, cycloolefin copolymer, cycloolefin polymer, polycarbonate, and polystyrene. is preferred.

According to this configuration, fine channels can be formed with good moldability, and each layer can be bonded well by an ultrasonic bonding process and a laser bonding process, so that a laminate in which microchannels are formed can be produced with high productivity. can be manufactured.

As one aspect,
Preferably, the ratio of the thickness of the thickest layer to the total thickness of the other two layers is from 20:1 to 5:6.

When the ratio of the thickness of the thickest layer to the total thickness of the other two layers is large as in this configuration, the overall temperature is particularly likely to rise excessively during joining by thermal welding. Therefore, especially when manufacturing a laminate having such a configuration, the advantages of combining the ultrasonic bonding process and the laser bonding process can be fully exploited.

As one aspect,
The thickness of the thickest layer is preferably 5 mm or more and 20 mm or less.

When the thickness of the thickest layer is large as in this configuration, the overall temperature tends to rise excessively particularly during bonding by thermal welding. Therefore, especially when manufacturing a laminate having such a configuration, the advantages of combining the ultrasonic bonding process and the laser bonding process can be fully exploited.

Further features and advantages of the invention will become clearer from the following description of exemplary and non-limiting embodiments, written with reference to the drawings.

Schematic cross-sectional view of a laminate according to an embodiment Exploded perspective view of laminate Flowchart showing the method for manufacturing the laminate Schematic cross-sectional view showing the ultrasonic bonding process Schematic cross-sectional view showing the laser bonding process Graph showing the average channel depth and variation of the laminates of Examples and Comparative Examples

Embodiments of a laminate and a method for manufacturing the same will be described with reference to the drawings. The laminate 1 of this embodiment has a multilayer structure including at least three layers. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the laminate 1 includes a first member 10 as a first layer, a second member 20 as a second layer laminated on the first member 10, and a second member 10 as a second layer. 20 and a third member 30 as a third layer laminated on the third member 20. In this embodiment, the first member 10 constitutes a "first layer," the second member 20 constitutes a "second layer," and the third member 30 constitutes a "third layer."

The first member 10, second member 20, and third member 30 that constitute the laminate 1 are each made of a polymer compound. The first member 10, the second member 20, and the third member 30 are each made of a resin material. The polymer compounds (resin materials) constituting the first member 10, second member 20, and third member 30 are not particularly limited, but are, for example, polymethyl (meth)acrylate, cycloolefin copolymer, cycloolefin polymer, Polycarbonate, polymethylpentene, polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate, and the like can be used. Among these, preferred are, for example, polymethyl (meth)acrylate, cycloolefin copolymer, cycloolefin polymer, polycarbonate, and polystyrene.

The first member 10 is formed into a thin plate shape. The first member 10 has a fine channel 15 formed on one surface (the surface on the second member 20 side). In this embodiment, a first hole 11, a second hole 12, and a connection groove 13 connecting these two holes 11 and 12 are formed on one surface of the first member 10. The first hole 11, the connecting groove 13, and the second hole 12 constitute a microchannel 15. The fine channel 15 can be formed to have a width of 1 mm or less and a depth of 0.01 mm or more and 0.5 mm or less, for example. The first member 10 is preferably colorless and transparent.

The second member 20 is formed into a thin plate shape. The second member 20 is formed with a first through hole 21, a second through hole 22, and a third through hole 23 that penetrate the second member 20 in the thickness direction. The first through hole 21 is formed at a position overlapping the first hole portion 11 of the first member 10 in plan view. The second through hole 22 is formed at a position overlapping the second hole portion 12 of the first member 10 in plan view. The third through hole 23 is formed at any position (approximately the central position in the illustrated example) that overlaps the connection groove 13 of the first member 10 in plan view.

In this embodiment, the second member 20 contains a laser light absorber. In this embodiment, the laser light absorber is dispersed and contained throughout the second member 20. As the laser light absorber, black materials, various oxides, various dyes, etc. can be used. Examples of the black material include carbon black and graphite. Examples of the various oxides include iron oxides (magnetite type triiron tetroxide), composite oxides of copper and chromium, and composite oxides of copper, chromium, and zinc. The dye preferably has a maximum absorption wavelength in the near-infrared region (700 nm to 2000 nm), such as cyanine compounds, phthalocyanine compounds, dithiol metal complexes, naphthoquinone compounds, diimmonium compounds, azo compounds, and the like. Among these, black materials are preferred. Note that as the laser light absorber, two or more of the above-mentioned materials may be used in combination.

The third member 30 is formed into a thick plate shape. The third member 30 is formed with a first through hole 31, a second through hole 32, and a third through hole 33 that penetrate the third member 30 in the thickness direction. The first through hole 31 is formed at a position overlapping the first hole portion 11 of the first member 10 and the first through hole 21 of the second member 20 in plan view. The second through hole 32 is formed at a position overlapping the second hole portion 12 of the first member 10 and the second through hole 22 of the second member 20 in plan view. The third through hole 33 is formed at a position that overlaps with the connection groove portion 13 of the first member 10 in a plan view, and also at a position that overlaps with the third through hole 23 of the second member 20.

As described above, the first hole 11, the connecting groove 13, and the second hole 12 form the microchannel 15. The first through hole 31 and the first through hole 21 function as an introduction part for introducing a solution into the first hole part 11 which becomes the entrance of the microchannel 15. The second through hole 32 and the second through hole 22 function as a lead-out part that leads out the solution from the second hole part 12 that serves as an outlet of the microchannel 15. The third through hole 33 and the third through hole 23 provide a space for accommodating a detection unit for detecting specific molecules in the solution flowing through the microchannel 15. Such a laminate 1 can be used, for example, as a microchannel device for analysis.

In the laminate 1 of this embodiment, the thickness of any one of the first member 10, the second member 20, and the third member 30 is configured to be thicker than the other two layers. In this embodiment, the thickness of the third member 30 is configured to be thicker than the thicknesses of the first member 10 and the second member 20. The thickness of the third member 30 is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, 5 mm or more and 20 mm or less. The thickness of the first member 10 and the second member 20 is not particularly limited, but can be independently set to, for example, 0.1 mm or more and 3 mm or less. In this embodiment, the thickness of the first member 10 is configured to be thinner than the thickness of the second member 20.

Further, the ratio of the thickness of the third member 30 constituting the thickest layer to the total thickness of the first member 10 and the second member 20 constituting the other two layers is not particularly limited, but for example, from 20:1 to Preferably, the ratio is 5:6. Further, the ratio between the thickness of the third member 30 constituting the thickest layer and the thickness of the second member 20 constituting the intermediate thickness layer is not particularly limited, but is, for example, 20:1 to 3:1. It is preferable. Further, the ratio between the thickness of the second member 20 constituting the intermediate thickness layer and the thickness of the first member 10 constituting the thinnest layer is not particularly limited, but is, for example, 5:1 to 6:5. It is preferable.

As shown in FIG. 3, the method for manufacturing the laminate 1 includes a molding step Sa, an ultrasonic bonding step Sb, and a laser bonding step Sc. The molding process Sa is performed prior to the ultrasonic bonding process Sb and the laser bonding process Sc. The ultrasonic bonding step Sb and the laser bonding step Sc may be performed in any order, but as shown in the figure, the ultrasonic bonding step Sb is performed first, and the laser bonding step is performed after the ultrasonic bonding step Sb. It is preferable to perform Sc.

In the molding step Sa, the first member 10, the second member 20, and the third member 30 are molded. The first member 10, second member 20, and third member 30 are molded using, for example, polymethyl (meth)acrylate, cycloolefin copolymer, cycloolefin polymer, polycarbonate, polymethylpentene, polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate, etc. as raw materials. It can be done by injection molding. At this time, when molding the second member 20, injection molding is performed using raw materials kneaded with addition of a laser light absorber such as a black material, an oxide, and a dye.

In the ultrasonic bonding step Sb, the second member 20 and the third member 30 are ultrasonically bonded. As shown in FIG. 4, in the ultrasonic bonding step Sb, the second member 20 and the third member 30 are bonded by pressure bonding while heating the interface between the second member 20 and the third member 30 by irradiating ultrasonic waves. The second member 20 and the third member 30 can be firmly joined by ultrasonic joining.

Here, when trying to join the second member 20 and the third member 30 by, for example, laser joining, the laser light is irradiated from the third member 30 side because the second member 20 has laser light absorbers dispersed therein. There is a need to. However, since the third member 30 is thick, it may be difficult to irradiate the laser beam from the third member 30 side to sufficiently heat the interface between the second member 20 and the third member 30. For this reason, there is a possibility that sufficient bonding force cannot be obtained. Further, when the second member 20 and the third member 30 are bonded using double-sided tape, for example, the bonding force may decrease after the pressure is released. If ultrasonic bonding is used, the second member 20 and the third member 30 can be firmly bonded without causing these inconveniences.

In the laser bonding step Sc, the first member 10 and the second member 20 are laser bonded. Types of laser light used include solid lasers such as ruby lasers and YAG lasers, liquid lasers such as dye lasers, gas lasers such as _CO2 lasers, excimer lasers, helium neon lasers, argon lasers, and krypton lasers, and semiconductor lasers. It is possible. As shown in FIG. 5, in the laser bonding step Sc, the first member 10 is attached to the second member 20 and the third member 30 bonded in the preceding ultrasonic bonding step Sb so as to be in contact with the second member 20. The laser beam is irradiated from the first member 10 side (the opposite side to the third member 30).

The irradiated laser light passes through the first member 10 that constitutes the thinnest layer and reaches the second member 20, and at the interface between the first member 10 and the second member 20, the laser light is absorbed by the second member 20. It is absorbed by the laser light absorber. In this way, the first member 10 and the second member 20 can be joined by locally heating the interface between the first member 10 and the second member 20 from the second member 20 side. At this time, since the first member 10 can be heated while avoiding an excessive temperature rise, it is possible to avoid problems such as the microchannel 15 formed in the first member 10 being crushed. Furthermore, since no adhesive is used, inconveniences such as clogging of the microchannel 15 due to surplus can be avoided, and the risk of components in the adhesive eluting can be eliminated. Furthermore, when thermal welding is performed, there is a risk that the depth of the microchannel 15 after fabrication will vary due to thermal deformation of a part of the channel, but laser welding eliminates this phenomenon. Hard to occur.

As described above, according to the manufacturing method according to the present embodiment, the first member 10, the second member 20, and the third member 30 can be bonded well while maintaining the state of the microchannel 15 suitably. can. Therefore, the laminate 1 having the microchannels 15 therein can be manufactured satisfactorily.

Hereinafter, the laminate 1 of this embodiment will be described in more detail by showing examples and comparative examples. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited by the following examples.

[Example 1]
Laminated body 1 was produced according to the following procedure. First, a first member 10 of 50 mm x 100 mm x 1 mm thick having 16 grooves (fine channels 15) with a depth of 40 μm is made by injection molding using polystyrene (manufactured by PS Japan Co., Ltd., trade name: 679). Created. In addition, polystyrene (manufactured by PS Japan, trade name: 679) kneaded with carbon black (manufactured by Tokai Carbon Co., Ltd.) was injection-molded to form a 50 mm x 100 mm x 2 mm thick second plate having through holes 21 to 23. A member 20 was produced. Further, a third member 30 of 50 mm x 100 mm x 16 mm thick and having through holes 31 to 33 was produced by injection molding using polystyrene (manufactured by PS Japan Co., Ltd., trade name: 679).

Next, the obtained second member 20 and third member 30 were overlapped, and with a load of 300 N applied, ultrasonic waves with a frequency of 20 kHz, an amplitude of 80 μm, and a vibration direction parallel to the plane were irradiated for 1 second. , both members 20 and 30 were joined by ultrasonic bonding. Next, the first member 10 is superimposed on the joined body of the second member 20 and the third member 30 so that the surface on which the microchannel 15 is formed is in contact with the second member 20, Laser irradiation was performed from the first member 10 side. Laser irradiation was performed using NOVOLAS manufactured by Leister Technologies under conditions of laser intensity of 40%, pressure of 4 bar, and irradiation movement speed of 5 mm/sec.

Regarding the laminate 1 obtained through ultrasonic bonding and laser bonding, the depth of each of the 16 grooves (microchannels 15) was measured, and the average depth and variation thereof were calculated.

[Example 2]
Laminated body 1 was created in the same manner as in Example 1. Regarding the obtained laminate 1, the depth of each of the 16 grooves (fine channels 15) was measured, and the average depth and variation thereof were calculated.

[Comparative example 1]
A laminate was produced according to the following procedure. First, in the same manner as in Example 1, the first member 10, the second member 20, and the third member 30 were produced. The obtained first member 10, second member 20, and third member 30 were stacked on top of each other in the stated order, and thermal welding was performed at 86° C. for 360 seconds under a load of 8000 N.

Regarding the laminate obtained through thermal welding, the depth of each of the 16 grooves (fine channels) was measured, and the average depth and variation thereof were calculated. Note that cases where the flow path could not be measured properly due to obvious collapse, etc., were excluded from the basic data for calculating the average depth and dispersion.

[Comparative example 2]
A laminate was created in the same manner as Comparative Example 1. Regarding the obtained laminate, the depth of each of the 16 grooves (fine channels) was measured, and the average depth and variation thereof were calculated.

FIG. 6 shows the average channel depth and variation of the laminates 1 of Examples 1 and 2 and the laminates of Comparative Examples 1 and 2. From the graph in FIG. 6, it can be seen that in the laminates 1 of Examples 1 and 2, the channel depth was generally maintained deeper even after bonding than in the laminates of Comparative Examples 1 and 2. . In addition, the laminates 1 of Examples 1 and 2 also have less variation in channel depth (both variations between multiple microchannels within the same laminate and variations between multiple laminates) than those of Comparative Examples 1 and 2. It can be seen that it was smaller than the laminate.

[Other embodiments]
(1) In the above embodiment, the configuration in which the molding step Sa is performed by injection molding has been described as an example. However, without being limited to such a configuration, other methods such as transfer molding or compression molding may be used as long as the first member 10, second member 20, and third member 30 having desired shapes can be obtained. The molding step Sa may also be performed. Further, the forming step Sa may be performed with machining such as cutting.

(2) In the above embodiment, a configuration in which the laser light absorber contained in the second member 20 is dispersed throughout the second member 20 has been described as an example. However, without being limited to such a configuration, the laser light absorber may be unevenly distributed, for example, on the surface of the second member 20 (the surface on the first member 10 side). In this case, for example, by applying a laser light absorber to the surface of the second member 20 (the surface on the first member 10 side), the second member 20 containing the laser light absorber can be obtained.

(3) In the above embodiment, the second member 20 includes a laser beam absorber. However, without being limited to such a configuration, for example, the first member 10 may contain a laser light absorber. In this way, it is sufficient that the first member 10 or the second member 20 contains the laser light absorber.

(4) In the above embodiment, the configuration was described as an example in which after the molding step Sa, the ultrasonic bonding step Sb→the laser bonding step Sc is performed in this order. However, without being limited to such a configuration, if the molding process Sa is performed first, then the laser bonding process Sc may be performed in the order of the ultrasonic bonding process Sb.

(5) The above embodiment describes an example in which the microchannel 15 is configured by the first hole 11, the connection groove 13, and the second hole 12 formed on one surface of the first member 10. did. However, the structure is not limited to such a structure, and various structures can be adopted as the specific structure of the microchannel 15. Further, a plurality of fine channels 15 may be formed independently of each other in one laminate 1.

(6) In the above embodiment, an example in which the third member 30 is thicker than the first member 10 and the second member 20 has been described. However, the second member 20 may be configured to be the thickest, or the first member 10 may be configured to be the thickest, without being limited to such a configuration.

(7) In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the third member 30 is the thickest, and the first member 10 is thinner than the second member 20. However, the second member 20 may be configured to have a thickness thinner than the first member 10 without being limited to such a configuration.

(8) The configurations disclosed in each of the above-mentioned embodiments (including the above embodiments and other embodiments; the same applies hereinafter) can be applied in combination with the configurations disclosed in other embodiments unless there is a conflict. It is also possible to do so. Regarding other configurations, the embodiments disclosed in this specification are illustrative in all respects, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure.

1 Laminated body 10 First member (first layer)
20 Second member (second layer)
30 Third member (third layer)
Sb Ultrasonic bonding process Sc Laser bonding process

Claims (6)

It comprises at least three layers, a first layer, a second layer, and a third layer each containing a polymer compound, and the thickness of any one of the first layer, the second layer, and the third layer is A method for manufacturing a laminate, which is thicker than the other two layers and has microchannels formed in the first layer,
a laser bonding step of laser bonding the first layer and the second layer;
an ultrasonic bonding step of ultrasonically bonding the second layer and the third layer;
A method for manufacturing a laminate, including: The method for manufacturing a laminate according to claim 1, wherein the laser bonding step is performed after the ultrasonic bonding step. The method for manufacturing a laminate according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first layer or the second layer contains a laser light absorber. The polymer compound contained in the first layer, the second layer, and the third layer is each one of polymethyl (meth)acrylate, cycloolefin copolymer, cycloolefin polymer, polycarbonate, and polystyrene. A method for manufacturing a laminate according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The method for producing a laminate according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the ratio of the thickness of the thickest layer to the total thickness of the other two layers is 20:1 to 5:6. The method for manufacturing a laminate according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the thickness of the thickest layer is 5 mm or more and 20 mm or less.

Images