High-Performance Surfactant for Droplet Microfluidics
008-FluoroSurfactant
The 008-FluoroSurfactant, developed by RAN Biotechnologies, is a highly stable surfactant engineered for reliable droplet generation and long-term emulsion stability in microfluidic systems.
Optimized for demanding biological and biochemical workflows, the 008-FluoroSurfactant supports uniform droplet formation, excellent thermal stability, and high biocompatibility, making it suitable for applications such as droplet digital PCR (ddPCR), single-cell analysis, and microreactor-based assays.
Widely adopted across the field, RAN Biotechnologies surfactants have been cited in more than 1,000 peer-reviewed publications and patents, continuing to demonstrate their proven performance and reliability in advanced droplet microfluidics workflows.
Key Features of the Surfactant
- Highly stable emulsions with reproducible droplet size and minimal coalescence
- Resistant to thermal and mechanical stress, including PCR cycling and emulsion reinjection and manipulation
- Biocompatible with enzymes, nucleic acids, fluorophores, and cells
- Compatible with multiple oils, including HFE-7500 and FO-101 (replacement oil)
- Ready-to-use formats (neat or pre-dissolved in oils)
Why Choose This Surfactant for Droplet Microfluidics?
Achieving stable and reproducible droplets is a key challenge in droplet microfluidics. The 008-FluoroSurfactant is specifically designed to meet experimental constraints while delivering consistent performance across a wide range of microfluidic geometries.
- High interfacial stability:
The surfactant forms a robust layer at the water-oil interface, helping maintain narrow droplet size distributions and long-term emulsion integrity. - Low surface tension:
By effectively reducing interfacial tension, the 008-FluoroSurfactant facilitates controlled droplet breakup, enabling precise droplet size tuning in flow-focusing and T-junction devices. - Resistance to degradation:
Emulsions remain stable during demanding protocols such as PCR thermal cycling, extended incubations, and high-throughput sorting. - Chemical inertness:
The surfactant is designed to minimize unwanted interactions with enzymes, nucleic acids, fluorophores, and other assay components, reducing risks of inhibition or signal loss.
“We’re pleased to formalize a collaboration that reflects many years of successful use of RAN Biotechnologies reagents alongside Fluigent systems in advanced droplet workflows,”
“Bringing 008-FluoroSurfactant to the Fluigent catalog is a natural step in expanding access to reliable, high-performance microfluidic solutions for the research community.”
Dr. Roger Nassar, CEO of RAN Biotechnologies.
Available Formulations
The 008-FluoroSurfactant is compatible with commonly used fluorinated oils such as HFE-7500, as well as alternative oils like FO-101.
- Ready-to-use oil formulations
- Neat format (5 g – 100%) for custom dilution in oil
- PFAS-free options available upon request to support evolving regulatory and sustainability requirements
Contact us to select the most suitable formulation for your application.
Selected publications:
- Kawasaki, F.; Mimori, T.; Mori, Y.; Aburatani, H.; Yachie, N.; Sato, I.; Ota, S. Computational Design of Synthetic Optical Barcodes in Microdroplets. Advanced Optical Materials 2024, 12 (12), 2302564. https://doi.org/10.1002/adom.202302564.
- Cardenas-Benitez, B. et al. Three-Dimensional Isotropic Imaging of Live Suspension Cells Enabled by Droplet Microvortices. PNAS, 2024, 121 (44), e2408567121. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2408567121
- Verbist, W. et al. SeParate: Multiway Fluorescence-Activated Droplet Sorting Based on Integration of Serial and Parallel Triaging Concepts. Lab on a Chip 2024, 24 (7), 2107–2121. https://doi.org/10.1039/D3LC01075A
Specifications
Product offering
| PN | Description |
|---|---|
| 008-FS-5G | 5 grams of neat undissolved 008-FluoroSurfactant |
| 008-FS2wtH-12ML | 12 milliliters of a solution containing 008-FluoroSurfactant in Novec HFE7500 at 2 weight% concentration |
| 008-FS2wtH-30ML | 30 milliliters of a solution containing 008-FluoroSurfactant in Novec HFE7500 at 2 weight% concentration |
| 008-FS2wtFO101-12ML | 12 milliliters of a solution containing 008-FluoroSurfactant in FO101 oil at 2 weight% concentration |
| 008-FS2wt FO101-30ML | 30 milliliters of a solution containing 008-FluoroSurfactant in FO101 oil at 2 weight% concentration |
| FO-101-120ML | 120 milliliters of FO-101 oil to do custom dilution of 008-FluoroSurfactant |
For Research Use Only. This product is not intended for diagnostic, therapeutic, or clinical use.
Technical specifications
- What is the difference between 008-FluoroSurfactant and dSurf ?
dSurf is our previous fluorosurfactant and has been discontinued. The 008-FluoroSurfactant is now recommended as the replacement surfactant for users seeking efficient droplet generation and long-term emulsion stability.
Internal validation and application testing have demonstrated comparable droplet generation performance and emulsion stability between the dSurf and the 008-FluoroSurfactant under standard operating conditions.
| dSurf | 008-FS | |
|---|---|---|
| Molecular weight | / | 1000 to 20 000 Da |
| Surface tension | 5 to 20mN/m depending on the aqueous phase and also depends on the droplet composition | 2 to 20mN/m depending on the aqueous phase and also depends on the droplet composition |
| Charge | ||
| CMC | 0,05% in weight | 0,05% in weight |
- What is the difference between HFE-7500 and FO-101?
FO-101 is an alternative oil developed by RAN Biotechnologies as a replacement for the commonly used fluorinated oil, Novec HFE-7500. It is designed to offer similar physical properties (density, viscosity, droplet behavior) while supporting more flexible and future-proof microfluidic workflows.
FAQ
- How should I choose between fluorinated oils and alternative oils like FO-101?
The choice depends on application requirements, regulatory constraints, and sustainability strategy. Both options deliver reliable droplet performance.
- Has 008-FluoroSurfactant been validated for droplet digital PCR (ddPCR)?
Yes. The 008-FluoroSurfactant has been successfully used in peer-reviewed droplet microfluidcs workflows involving thermocycling, fluorescence readout, and droplet sorting. It is engineered to maintain droplet integrity under repeated heating and cooling cycles. Emulsions remain stable during:
- High-temperature denaturation steps (up to 95 °C)
- 30-40+ PCR cycles
- Rapid thermal transitions
Minimal droplet coalescence and consistent fluorescence signals are maintained throughout the protocol, supporting reliable ddPCR quantification.
Proof-of-concept: Wang, R.; Liu, Y.; Chen, S.; Bai, L.; Guo, K.; Pang, Y.; Qian, F.; Li, Y.; Ding, L.; Wang, Y. utPCR: A Strategy for the Highly Specific and Absolutely Quantitative Detection of Single Molecules within Only Minutes. Biosensors 2023, 13 (10). https://doi.org/10.3390/bios13100910.
- Can droplets remain stable during long incubations?
Yes. The surfactant provides strong interfacial stability for extended incubations, such as enzymatic reactions, single-cell assays, live-cell encapsulation, and time-dependent biochemical reactions.
Proof-of-concept: Samlali, K.; Alves, C. L.; Jezernik, M.; Shih, S. C. C. Droplet Digital Microfluidic System for Screening Filamentous Fungi Based on Enzymatic Activity. Microsyst Nanoeng 2022, 8 (1), 123. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41378-022-00456-1.
Droplets retain narrow size distribution and show low coalescence rates even after prolonged incubation periods, making the formulation suitable for multi-hour or multi-day workflows.
- Does the surfactant interfere with enzymes, DNA, or fluorescence readouts?
The 008-FluoroSurfactant is designed to be chemically inert and biocompatible.
It supports polymerase activity, nucleic acid amplification, fluorescent probe stability, and cell viability in encapsulation workflows.
Published applications confirm reliable signal retention and minimal assay interference.
- Is the surfactant available in a PFAS-free formulation?
Yes. PFAS-free surfactant options are available to support regulatory compliance and sustainability goals, while maintaining reliable droplet stability and performance. Please contact us to select the most suitable formulation for your application.
Ask for a Quote / Contact Us
Ready to integrate 008-FluoroSurfactant into your microfluidic experiments?
Request a quote or contact our team to find the best configuration for your application.
Expertise & resources
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Expert Reviews: Basics of Microfluidics 10 Tips for Reliable Droplet Generation Read more
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Microfluidics White Papers Double emulsion for the generation of microcapsules – a Review Read more
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Microfluidic Application Notes Droplet Sequencing: Drop-Seq method Read more
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Expert Reviews: Basics of Microfluidics Microfluidic Droplet Production Method Read more
