Innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imaging

Abstract A novel colorimetric analysis of methylcellulose (MC) hydrogel was conducted using a standard smartphone camera to measure its thermo-optical properties. As demonstrated for the first time, the temperature of MC gels was directly determined from photographs by exploiting a unique one-to-one...

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Main Authors: Itai Danieli, Daniel Rittel
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-05-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-00018-1
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author Itai Danieli
Daniel Rittel
author_facet Itai Danieli
Daniel Rittel
author_sort Itai Danieli
collection DOAJ
description Abstract A novel colorimetric analysis of methylcellulose (MC) hydrogel was conducted using a standard smartphone camera to measure its thermo-optical properties. As demonstrated for the first time, the temperature of MC gels was directly determined from photographs by exploiting a unique one-to-one correlation between temperature and mean pixel intensity in the blue channel of RGB images, all color channels showed strong hysteresis. Two innovative procedures for gelation assessment are introduced: variance analysis and histogram analysis with normal distribution fitting. The variance analysis confirms known gelation related temperatures, validating the effectiveness of the new method. Histogram analysis reveals a significant increase in RMSE (root mean square error) near gelation related points, offering a new indicator for gelation status. This methodology underscores the untapped potential of colorimetry to extract valuable data from hydrogels in general and MC gel in particular.
format Article
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spelling doaj-art-83f108ada2bc4a71891af2ac132564832025-08-20T02:10:54ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-05-011511910.1038/s41598-025-00018-1Innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imagingItai Danieli0Daniel Rittel1Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Technion – Israel Institute of TechnologyFaculty of Mechanical Engineering, Technion – Israel Institute of TechnologyAbstract A novel colorimetric analysis of methylcellulose (MC) hydrogel was conducted using a standard smartphone camera to measure its thermo-optical properties. As demonstrated for the first time, the temperature of MC gels was directly determined from photographs by exploiting a unique one-to-one correlation between temperature and mean pixel intensity in the blue channel of RGB images, all color channels showed strong hysteresis. Two innovative procedures for gelation assessment are introduced: variance analysis and histogram analysis with normal distribution fitting. The variance analysis confirms known gelation related temperatures, validating the effectiveness of the new method. Histogram analysis reveals a significant increase in RMSE (root mean square error) near gelation related points, offering a new indicator for gelation status. This methodology underscores the untapped potential of colorimetry to extract valuable data from hydrogels in general and MC gel in particular.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-00018-1Novel methodologyMethylcelluloseGelsColorimetryGelation.
spellingShingle Itai Danieli
Daniel Rittel
Innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imaging
Scientific Reports
Novel methodology
Methylcellulose
Gels
Colorimetry
Gelation.
title Innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imaging
title_full Innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imaging
title_fullStr Innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imaging
title_full_unstemmed Innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imaging
title_short Innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imaging
title_sort innovative colorimetric thermal study of methylcellulose hydrogel via smartphone imaging
topic Novel methodology
Methylcellulose
Gels
Colorimetry
Gelation.
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-00018-1
work_keys_str_mv AT itaidanieli innovativecolorimetricthermalstudyofmethylcellulosehydrogelviasmartphoneimaging
AT danielrittel innovativecolorimetricthermalstudyofmethylcellulosehydrogelviasmartphoneimaging