Evaluating the effectiveness of 2D uniform network models in capturing hydrogel mechanical behaviour

• Main Author: Cho, Keith
• Other Authors: Li Hua
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
• Subjects: Engineering; Hydrogel; Simulation; Graph theory
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/176870
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Hydrogels are three-dimensional polymer networks that absorb water and exhibit unique mechanical properties, making them highly suitable materials for a range of biomedical and engineering applications. However, the soft and brittle nature of hydrogels restricts their tolerance under cyclic loading and deformation, presenting challenges in modelling their mechanical behaviour. The goal of this study to construct a robust polymer network model that more accurately simulates the mechanical properties and deformation of hydrogels as compared to constitutive models based on classical continuum mechanics. A mesoscopic network mechanics approach is used to generate two-dimensional uniform network models in Abaqus CAE. The models are then processed in MATLAB, where graph theory measures are applied to evaluate network robustness and connectivity. The results demonstrate that as deformation increases, the global efficiency of the hydrogel network generally decreases, while local efficiency exhibits a more complex behavior depending on the balance between the disruption of local connections and the potential for local reorganization. This project hopes to contribute to the development of more reliable predictive models for hydrogel mechanics and facilitate the design of advanced hydrogel-based materials and devices. The combination of Abaqus CAE for model generation and MATLAB for network analysis using graph theory measures offers a comprehensive framework for future research in this field.