Internal pressure measurements in microchannels of different shapes

This paper presents the experimental results of determining friction factors for two microchannels with circular cross-sections: rectilinear and curvilinear. The inner diameter of the channels is 68.9 and 70.3 $\mu$m. The Reynolds numbers ranged from 320 to 3215. Pressure measurements are carried out simultaneously in 16 locations along the straight microchannel and in 12 locations for the curved microchannel. The friction factor for the straight microchannel is in good agreement with the theoretical value for the round smooth tubes. For the curved microchannel, the friction factor value of the curved section is less than the reference value for smoothly curved tubes. The Reynolds number for the laminar-turbulent transition in a straight microchannel is 2300–2600. In the curved microchannel the transition is not observed. The length of the developing region was identified, and the inlet minor loss coefficient is calculated.