{
    "title": "VUB researcher receives second Proof of Concept Grant from European Research Council",
    "modified_at": "2022-02-14 15:13:00",
    "published_at": "2022-02-14 15:13:00",
    "url": "https://press.vub.ac.be/vub-researcher-receives-second-proof-of-concept-grant-from-european-research-council",
    "short_url": "http://prez.ly/VkVb",
    "culture": "en",
    "language": "EN",
    "subtitle": "Professor Wim De Malsche builds new instrument for complex separations such as blood analysis",
    "slug": "vub-researcher-receives-second-proof-of-concept-grant-from-european-research-council",
    "body": "<p><strong>A Vrije Universiteit Brussel researcher has received a second European Research Council Proof of Concept Grant for his ultra-performance analytical separations, worth &euro;150,000. Prof Wim De Malsche is head of the &micro;Flow team within the VUB departments of Bioscience Engineering (DBIT) and Chemical Engineering (CHIS). The grant is linked to his ERC Starting Grant project EVODIS (worth &euro;1.47 million) and makes him the first VUB researcher to receive ERC follow-up funding twice. He will use the money to develop a prototype for a new separation device, which has multiple applications. </strong></p>\n<h2><strong>Faster separation of liquids</strong></h2>\n<p>In the most high-performance analytical instruments, which are used to carry out blood analysis, for example, the first step is separation, in which the various components in a sample to be examined are divided into groups before being presented to a detector. Further improvement of the process is limited due to the slow spontaneous transport of the components in the traditionally exploited, naturally occurring, diffusion process. De Malsche has devised a method to accelerate this mass transport of molecules by &ldquo;stirring&rdquo; them.</p>\n<blockquote><p>De Malsche: <em>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s like a sugar cube that takes a long time to completely dissolve in a cup of tea. Stirring speeds up that process. With the use of an alternating current that generates a fluid flow, the components are transported many times faster. This approach of stirring on a microscale ensures that dilution of the groups of components is prevented, so they can be measured in high resolution.</em>&rdquo;</p></blockquote>\n<p>He uses induced fluid flows and electrochemical effects for this new method, which he has patented. With the first Proof of Concept Grant, he developed a new instrument to map this type of fluid flow, the vibrating 3D particle image velocimetry (PIV) microscope.</p>\n<h2><strong>Next phase</strong></h2>\n<p>The next phase is to integrate an electrically driven pumping system.</p>\n<blockquote><p>De Malsche: &ldquo;<em>The new instrument promises faster and higher-performance separations in miniature systems, which can be used in analytical labs, but also for patients in a point-of-care setting. The complex separation of haemoglobin in its genetic variants for better diagnosis and monitoring of diabetes is one of the applications we have in mind</em>.&rdquo;</p></blockquote>\n<blockquote><p>Filip Legein, &micro;Flow Cell valorisation manager: &ldquo;<em>This research fits within the activities of the multidisciplinary consortium <a href=\"https://microflowcell.vub.be\" style=\"color:blue; text-decoration:underline\">&micro;Flow Cell</a>, a Group of Excellence in Advanced Research (GEAR) that is actively committed to collaboration with industry and valorisation of its research. This is the second Proof of Concept Grant for &micro;Flow Cell, which is recognition of the quality and relevance of the research carried out, and will allow us to build the bridge to industrial application</em>.&rdquo;</p></blockquote>\n<p><strong>Contact&nbsp;</strong></p>\n<p>Wim De Malsche</p>\n<p><a href=\"mailto:wim.de.malsche@vub.be\" style=\"color:blue; text-decoration:underline\" target=\"_blank\">wim.de.malsche@vub.be</a></p>\n<p>02 629 37 81</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>Filip Legein</p>\n<p><a href=\"mailto:filip.legein@vub.be\" style=\"color:blue; text-decoration:underline\" target=\"_blank\">filip.legein@vub.be</a></p>\n<p>https://microflowcell.vub.be</p>",
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            "caption": "Diagram of separation principle",
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            "name": "Lies Feron",
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