Design and Validation of Creep Testing System for Hydrogels.

Team: Megan Toth& Kelly Williams, Advisor: Glennys Mensing, Client: Weiyuan John Kao,
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dept. of Biomedical Engineering.
mg
T
-kx
Force Verification
Force vs Displacement
y = 0.0348x + 0.0175
R2 = 0.9869
0.01
0.02
0.03
0.04
0.05
0.06
0.07
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4
Displacement (inches)
F o r c e ( l b )
Figure: Graph of Force (lb.) vs.
Displacement of the spring from 6
grams to 24 grams with 2 gram
increments. Spring constant of
0.0348 lb/in, 1.2%error.
Figure: Force body diagram
of the creep testing system
while undergoing force
verification with the spring.
Hookes law, F = -kx was used
to determine the spring
constant, k.
Vibration Control
Figure: Picture of the creep testing system with the
granite block beneath it. A 12x12x4 granite block
polished on both sides was purchased for absorbing
bench-top vibrations.
Protocol
A protocol was created for the validation of
the creep testing system to provide a
consistent method for the testing of
materials, following ASTM standards. The
protocol is divided into manageable sections
including Test Specimen Dimensions, Test
Specimen Fabrication, Grip Maintenance,
Force Calibration, Vibration Control, Data
Collection, and Reporting of Data as seen in
greater detail below.
Abstract
Interpenetrating networks (IPNs) have many
biomedical applications such as wound healing.
The efficacy of the IPN as a wound dressing is
dependent on its mechanical properties. A creep
testing system coupled with an environmental
chamber was previously designed to evaluate the
tensile creep properties of the IPNs. The goal of this
project is to validate the pre-existing device
following ASTM standard D2990 while modifying the
device design and the test specimen fabrication
protocol for improvements. A protocol was written
to validate each component of the entire system.
The protocol was followed to test three latex
samples as standards and three IPN samples.
Background
Interpenetrating Networks (IPNs)
Composed of cross-linked gelatin and
poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate
Used as a wound dressing
Motivation
Creep testing of IPNs:
Provides mechanical strength
characteristics
Mimics tensile stress on IPNs due to
wound contraction


Problem Statement
Modify existing protocol and creep testing
system to provide optimal experimental
conditions.
Test different formulations of IPNs in an 11
week study.

Design Specifications
Temperature: +/- 2
o
C
pH: constant pH
Force: +/- 1% of applied load
Specimen Dimensions:
11 mm gage length
2 mm gage width
1 mm thickness
Figure: Image of the current design. The current design is composed of: an acrylic
chamber, a pair of grips, counterbalance, granite block, a weight rack, an
extensometer (LVDT), an analog to digital converter, and a computer for data
acquisitioning.
Counterweight
Previously:
Aluminum Cylinder
Did not account
for the buoyant
force of the top
grip
Currently:
Lead Slip Shots
Accounts for
the buoyant
force of the top
grip
Mass is evenly
distributed
along wire
Grips
Previously:

Currently:

Bottomand top grip clamp surfaces were sanded and lined with
adhesive rubber and sand paper to minimize slippage of samples.

Figure : The previous top grip has
two components of force in the
longitudinal direction.
Figure : The current top grip has a
single force in the longitudinal
direction.
LVDT Verification
Measured (mm) LVDT (mm) % Error
5.3 5.314 0.264
19.3 19.314 0.070
33.7 33.521 0.530
49.1 49.061 0.079
72.4 72.37 0.041
Average % Error Sd of % Error
0.197 0.210
To verify the extensometer, the LVDT core was
marked and measured manually at 6 distances, while
being held in that position. These measurements
were compared with the output from the LVDT in
Microsoft Excel from the WinDaq software.
LVDT
Light weight

Durable

Fits onto existing
weight rack

Counter weight
compensation
LVDT

Must maintain
constant weight
Can apply weight
slowly and evenly
Must not enter
LVDT core

The Mold: Teflon Reusable Mold
Teflon is inexpensive
and molds are reusable
Meets ASTM dimensions
Easy to fabricate
Figure 7: The Teflon
mold is sandwiched
between glass slides to
keep the thickness
consistent. The IPN is
fabricated between them.
Marking Gauge Length
At this step, food coloring is used to
mark a set gauge length on the IPN
The Samples
IPN Samples: Legend:
4 Formulations
Room Temperature
PBS Solution
pH 7.4 +/- 0.1

40G/60PEGdA 600
40G/60PEGdA 2k
50G/50PEGdA 600
50G/50PEGdA 2k
G = Gelatin
PEGdA = polyethylene
glycol diacrylate
600 = 600 MW PEG
2k = 2k MW PEG
All solution ratios are
given in weight %
All formulations are 10%
Gelatin
Creep Testing
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
1 10 100 1000 10000 100000
Log[time] (Log[sec])
P
e
r
c
e
n
t S
t r
a
i n
40G/60PEGdA600
50G/50PEGdA600
50G/50PEGdA2k
40G/60PEGda2k
Figure 8: IPN Testing Results.
The average test results are shown for each
formulation tested with an n = 3. Tests were
conducted for three hours in PBS at room
temperature and pH of 7.4.
Table 1: IPN Raw Testing Data.
Data for all three trials of each of four
formulations are given. This data
corresponds to the graph in Figure .
Add method to change temperature of chamber
Vary stresses for each sample type

Test formulations containing a modified gelatin
backbone

Test formulations containing modified PEGdA


IPNs containing 600MW PEGdA under
went more creep than 2k samples.
Formulations containing 600MW
underwent more creep at lower
gelatin/PEGdA ratios
The creep chamber is capable of testing
various formulations of IPNs consistently
Christy Palmer
Kao Lab
Glennys Mensing PhD
WJ Kao PhD