Chemo-mechanical modelling of swelling and crosslinking reaction kinetics in alginate hydrogels: A novel theory and its numerical implementation

Hajikhani, Aidin; Wriggers, Peter; Marino, Michele

doi:10.1016/j.jmps.2021.104476

Cited by 28 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…The D value at the first three cycles was about 1.8-11 times higher than the second of the three cycles (60-120 min). This result is similar to the findings of Li et al [36] and Hajikhani et al [37]. They stated that initial Ca 2+ cations, which have a much smaller size than the pore size of alginate gel, could diffuse unhindered into the alginate matrix before solidification.…”

Section: Diffusion Coefficients Of Calcium Ionsupporting

confidence: 91%

The Feasibility of Using Pulsed-Vacuum in Stimulating Calcium-Alginate Hydrogel Balls

Jinnoros

Innawong

Udomkun

et al. 2021

Foods

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The effect of the pulsed-vacuum stimulation (PVS) on the external gelation process of calcium-alginate (Ca-Alg) hydrogel balls was studied. The process was conducted at four different working pressures (8, 35, 61, and 101 kPa) for three pulsed-vacuum cycles (one cycle consisted of three repetitions of 10 min of depressurization and 10 min of vacuum liberation). The diffusion coefficients (D) of calcium cations (Ca2+) gradually reduced over time and were significantly pronounced (p < 0.05) at the first three hours of the external gelation process. The rate of weight reduction (WR) and rate of volume shrinkage (Sv) varied directly according to the D value of Ca2+. A significant linear relationship between WR and Sv was observed for all working pressures (R2 > 0.91). An application of a pulsed vacuum at 8 kPa led to the highest weight reduction and shrinkage of Ca-Alg hydrogel samples compared to other working pressures, while 61 kPa seemed to be the best condition. Although all textural characteristics (hardness, breaking deformation, Young’s modulus, and rupture strength) did not directly variate by the level of working pressures, they were likely correlated with the levels of WR and Sv. Scanning electron micrographs (SEM) supported that the working pressure affected the characteristics of Ca-Alg hydrogel structure. Samples stimulated at a working pressure of 8 kPa showed higher deformation with heterogenous structure, large cavities, and looser layer when compared with those at 61 kPa. These results indicate the PVS is a promising technology that can be effectively applied in the external gelation process of Ca-Alg gel.

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Section: Diffusion Coefficients Of Calcium Ionsupporting

confidence: 91%

The Feasibility of Using Pulsed-Vacuum in Stimulating Calcium-Alginate Hydrogel Balls

Jinnoros

Innawong

Udomkun

et al. 2021

Foods

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“…The radii derived for each combination of core and shell materials were used as initial values to define the geometry of an axial symmetric finite element method (FEM) model implemented in Comsol Multiphysics 6, solving the reaction–diffusion equations for the transport of diluted species (Ca 2+ ions) from an external fluid domain to porous media domains representing the alginate shell and core, respectively. The formation of G-blocks during Ca 2+ -mediated alginate crosslinking ( Equation I ) was implemented as a second-order reaction since it depends on both the concentration of Ca 2+ ions and the concentration of non-crosslinked alginate [ 30 , 31 ] .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Where k is the reaction rate of the gelation, c Ca 2+ is the concentration of Ca 2+ and c Alg 0 is the initial concentration of un-crosslinked alginate [ 30 , 31 ] . An apparent diffusion coefficient 436 D app ( Equation II ) was introduced to couple reaction– diffusion and crosslinking phenomena:…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…D 0 ( Equation III ) represents the value of the free diffusion coefficient, controlled by the size of the macromolecule as described by the Einstein–Stokes equation, where k b is Boltzmann’s constant, T the temperature in Kelvin, μ the solvent viscosity, and R H is the hydrodynamic radius. a ( Equation IV ) represents the time-dependent coefficient that considers the effect of the degree of gelation α , defined as the ratio between the calcium- and time-dependent concentration of crosslinked alginate and the initial concentration of free alginate [ 30 , 31 ] and b ( Equation V ) is the Brinkmann coefficient which considers the influence of hindered diffusion in the spherical gel structure [ 32 ] . κ ( α ) represents the permeability of the structure as a function of α .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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An integrated in silico–in vitro approach for bioprinting core–shell bioarchitectures

Guazzelli¹,

Cacopardo²,

Corti³

et al. 2023

IJB

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Biological tissues possess a high degree of structural complexity characterized by curvature and stratification of different tissue layers. Despite recent advances in in vitro technology, current engineering solutions do not comprise both of these features. In this paper, we present an integrated in silico–in vitro strategy for the design and fabrication of biological barriers with controlled curvature and architecture. Analytical and computational tools combined with advanced bioprinting methods are employed to optimize living inks for bioprinting-structured core–shell constructs based on alginate. A finite element model is used to compute the hindered diffusion and crosslinking phenomena involved in the formation of core–shell structures and to predict the width of the shell as a function of material parameters. Constructs with a solid alginate-based shell and a solid, liquid, or air core can be reproducibly printed using the workflow. As a proof of concept, epithelial cells and fibroblasts were bioprinted respectively in a liquid core (10 mg/mL Pluronic) and in a solid shell (20 mg/mL alginate plus 20 mg/mL gelatin, used for providing the cells with adhesive moieties). These constructs had a roundness of 97.6% and an average diameter of 1500 ±136 μm. Moreover, their viability was close to monolayer controls (74.12% ± 22.07%) after a week in culture, and the paracellular transport was twice that of cell-free constructs, indicating cell polarization.

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“…The crosslinking structure has great influence on the properties of the alginate gel. 129 Based on the ''Egg-Box'' model, it has been found that hydrogen bond interactions and chain-chain interactions (such as van der Waals force) can lead to the formation of dimers in sodium alginate hydrogels, which can enhance the gel strength 130 (As shown in Fig. 12B and C).…”

Section: Structure Of the Alginate Saline Gelmentioning

confidence: 99%

A review on the synthesis and development of alginate hydrogels for wound therapy

Cao

Cong

et al. 2023

J. Mater. Chem. B

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Chemo-mechanical modelling of swelling and crosslinking reaction kinetics in alginate hydrogels: A novel theory and its numerical implementation

Cited by 28 publications

References 60 publications

The Feasibility of Using Pulsed-Vacuum in Stimulating Calcium-Alginate Hydrogel Balls

The Feasibility of Using Pulsed-Vacuum in Stimulating Calcium-Alginate Hydrogel Balls

An integrated in silico–in vitro approach for bioprinting core–shell bioarchitectures

A review on the synthesis and development of alginate hydrogels for wound therapy

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