Viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applications

Human tissues exhibit strain rate-dependent mechanical properties, adapting to various physical activities by altering their stiffness and elasticity. This dynamic behavior is critical for tissue functionality, influencing the design of biomaterials for tissue engineering. The current choice of tiss...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kamil Elkhoury, Guan-Lin Chen, Erfan Noorbakhsh Noshahri, Julio Zuazola, Nikhil Gupta, Sanjairaj Vijayavenkataraman
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-05-01
Series:Polymer Testing
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0142941825000923
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849729846793469952
author Kamil Elkhoury
Guan-Lin Chen
Erfan Noorbakhsh Noshahri
Julio Zuazola
Nikhil Gupta
Sanjairaj Vijayavenkataraman
author_facet Kamil Elkhoury
Guan-Lin Chen
Erfan Noorbakhsh Noshahri
Julio Zuazola
Nikhil Gupta
Sanjairaj Vijayavenkataraman
author_sort Kamil Elkhoury
collection DOAJ
description Human tissues exhibit strain rate-dependent mechanical properties, adapting to various physical activities by altering their stiffness and elasticity. This dynamic behavior is critical for tissue functionality, influencing the design of biomaterials for tissue engineering. The current choice of tissue-specific biomaterials does not take into account the tissue dynamics nor the strain-dependent property variation. We propose a conceptual framework to overcome this challenge, considering soft tissues as a case in point and Thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPUs) as a suitable material, the chemistry of which can be controlled to develop them across a broad spectrum of mechanical properties to match those of the natural tissue. TPUs have attracted considerable interest in tissue engineering because of their versatility in biofabrication methods, tunable mechanical properties, and biocompatibility. However, characterizing such soft viscoelastic materials with a strong dependence of their properties on temperature and strain rate is a challenge and requires an elaborate test scheme over multiple strain rates and temperatures. The present study described a viscoelastic-elastic transform that can convert the frequency domain viscoelastic measurements to elastic constants over a wider range of test conditions using a single sample and substantially reduce the test regime. Tensile test measurements were used to validate the results of the transformation. The findings revealed that while some TPUs might be suitable for certain applications at specific strain rates, others are better suited when strain rates are varied to more accurately mimic human life conditions. Additionally, cytocompatibility tests, crucial for tissue engineering applications, confirmed that the TPU scaffolds support cell attachment and proliferation, with viability rates exceeding 80 % across all tested groups. Overall, this study highlights the versatility of the viscoelastic-elastic transform method in identifying suitable materials by characterizing their strain rate-dependent mechanical properties, thereby optimizing scaffold performance to more accurately replicate the dynamic conditions encountered in human tissues.
format Article
id doaj-art-ee71afdf0b2041c591a27be9e7dee079
institution DOAJ
issn 1873-2348
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Polymer Testing
spelling doaj-art-ee71afdf0b2041c591a27be9e7dee0792025-08-20T03:09:04ZengElsevierPolymer Testing1873-23482025-05-0114610877810.1016/j.polymertesting.2025.108778Viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applicationsKamil Elkhoury0Guan-Lin Chen1Erfan Noorbakhsh Noshahri2Julio Zuazola3Nikhil Gupta4Sanjairaj Vijayavenkataraman5The Vijay Lab, Division of Engineering, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Composite Materials and Mechanics Laboratory, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, Brooklyn, NY, 11201, USAComposite Materials and Mechanics Laboratory, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, Brooklyn, NY, 11201, USAThe Vijay Lab, Division of Engineering, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab EmiratesThe Vijay Lab, Division of Engineering, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab EmiratesComposite Materials and Mechanics Laboratory, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, Brooklyn, NY, 11201, USA; Corresponding author.The Vijay Lab, Division of Engineering, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, Brooklyn, NY, 11201, USA; Corresponding author. The Vijay Lab, Division of Engineering, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.Human tissues exhibit strain rate-dependent mechanical properties, adapting to various physical activities by altering their stiffness and elasticity. This dynamic behavior is critical for tissue functionality, influencing the design of biomaterials for tissue engineering. The current choice of tissue-specific biomaterials does not take into account the tissue dynamics nor the strain-dependent property variation. We propose a conceptual framework to overcome this challenge, considering soft tissues as a case in point and Thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPUs) as a suitable material, the chemistry of which can be controlled to develop them across a broad spectrum of mechanical properties to match those of the natural tissue. TPUs have attracted considerable interest in tissue engineering because of their versatility in biofabrication methods, tunable mechanical properties, and biocompatibility. However, characterizing such soft viscoelastic materials with a strong dependence of their properties on temperature and strain rate is a challenge and requires an elaborate test scheme over multiple strain rates and temperatures. The present study described a viscoelastic-elastic transform that can convert the frequency domain viscoelastic measurements to elastic constants over a wider range of test conditions using a single sample and substantially reduce the test regime. Tensile test measurements were used to validate the results of the transformation. The findings revealed that while some TPUs might be suitable for certain applications at specific strain rates, others are better suited when strain rates are varied to more accurately mimic human life conditions. Additionally, cytocompatibility tests, crucial for tissue engineering applications, confirmed that the TPU scaffolds support cell attachment and proliferation, with viability rates exceeding 80 % across all tested groups. Overall, this study highlights the versatility of the viscoelastic-elastic transform method in identifying suitable materials by characterizing their strain rate-dependent mechanical properties, thereby optimizing scaffold performance to more accurately replicate the dynamic conditions encountered in human tissues.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0142941825000923Dynamic mechanical analysisElastic modulusThermoplastic polyurethane TPU3D printingTissue engineering
spellingShingle Kamil Elkhoury
Guan-Lin Chen
Erfan Noorbakhsh Noshahri
Julio Zuazola
Nikhil Gupta
Sanjairaj Vijayavenkataraman
Viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applications
Polymer Testing
Dynamic mechanical analysis
Elastic modulus
Thermoplastic polyurethane TPU
3D printing
Tissue engineering
title Viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applications
title_full Viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applications
title_fullStr Viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applications
title_full_unstemmed Viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applications
title_short Viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applications
title_sort viscoelastic to elastic transformation of soft polymer properties for accelerated materials selection based on tissue dynamics in tissue engineering applications
topic Dynamic mechanical analysis
Elastic modulus
Thermoplastic polyurethane TPU
3D printing
Tissue engineering
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0142941825000923
work_keys_str_mv AT kamilelkhoury viscoelastictoelastictransformationofsoftpolymerpropertiesforacceleratedmaterialsselectionbasedontissuedynamicsintissueengineeringapplications
AT guanlinchen viscoelastictoelastictransformationofsoftpolymerpropertiesforacceleratedmaterialsselectionbasedontissuedynamicsintissueengineeringapplications
AT erfannoorbakhshnoshahri viscoelastictoelastictransformationofsoftpolymerpropertiesforacceleratedmaterialsselectionbasedontissuedynamicsintissueengineeringapplications
AT juliozuazola viscoelastictoelastictransformationofsoftpolymerpropertiesforacceleratedmaterialsselectionbasedontissuedynamicsintissueengineeringapplications
AT nikhilgupta viscoelastictoelastictransformationofsoftpolymerpropertiesforacceleratedmaterialsselectionbasedontissuedynamicsintissueengineeringapplications
AT sanjairajvijayavenkataraman viscoelastictoelastictransformationofsoftpolymerpropertiesforacceleratedmaterialsselectionbasedontissuedynamicsintissueengineeringapplications