Obstructed swelling and fracture of hydrogels

TY - JOUR

T1 - Obstructed swelling and fracture of hydrogels

AU - Plummer, Abigail

AU - Adkins, Caroline

AU - Louf, Jean François

AU - Košmrlj, Andrej

AU - Datta, Sujit S.

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

PY - 2024/1/22

Y1 - 2024/1/22

N2 - Obstructions influence the growth and expansion of bodies in a wide range of settings—but isolating and understanding their impact can be difficult in complex environments. Here, we study obstructed growth/expansion in a model system accessible to experiments, simulations, and theory: hydrogels swelling around fixed cylindrical obstacles with varying geometries. When the obstacles are large and widely-spaced, hydrogels swell around them and remain intact. In contrast, our experiments reveal that when the obstacles are narrow and closely-spaced, hydrogels fracture as they swell. We use finite element simulations to map the magnitude and spatial distribution of stresses that build up during swelling at equilibrium in a 2D model, providing a route toward predicting when this phenomenon of self-fracturing is likely to arise. Applying lessons from indentation theory, poroelasticity, and nonlinear continuum mechanics, we also develop a theoretical framework for understanding how the maximum principal tensile and compressive stresses that develop during swelling are controlled by obstacle geometry and material parameters. These results thus help to shed light on the mechanical principles underlying growth/expansion in environments with obstructions.

AB - Obstructions influence the growth and expansion of bodies in a wide range of settings—but isolating and understanding their impact can be difficult in complex environments. Here, we study obstructed growth/expansion in a model system accessible to experiments, simulations, and theory: hydrogels swelling around fixed cylindrical obstacles with varying geometries. When the obstacles are large and widely-spaced, hydrogels swell around them and remain intact. In contrast, our experiments reveal that when the obstacles are narrow and closely-spaced, hydrogels fracture as they swell. We use finite element simulations to map the magnitude and spatial distribution of stresses that build up during swelling at equilibrium in a 2D model, providing a route toward predicting when this phenomenon of self-fracturing is likely to arise. Applying lessons from indentation theory, poroelasticity, and nonlinear continuum mechanics, we also develop a theoretical framework for understanding how the maximum principal tensile and compressive stresses that develop during swelling are controlled by obstacle geometry and material parameters. These results thus help to shed light on the mechanical principles underlying growth/expansion in environments with obstructions.

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85183479236

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85183479236#tab=citedBy

U2 - 10.1039/d3sm01470c

DO - 10.1039/d3sm01470c

M3 - Article

C2 - 38252539

SN - 1744-683X

VL - 20

SP - 1425

EP - 1437

JO - Soft matter

JF - Soft matter

IS - 7

ER -