Mechanical Properties of Graphene Foam and Graphene Foam—Tissue Composites

Abstract

Graphene foam (GF), a 3-dimensional derivative of graphene, has received much attention recently for applications in tissue engineering due to its unique mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties. Although GF is an appealing material for cartilage tissue engineering, the mechanical properties of GF – tissue composites under dynamic compressive loads have not yet been reported. The objective of this study was to measure the elastic and viscoelastic properties of GF and GF-tissue composites under unconfined compression when quasi-static and dynamic loads are applied at strain magnitudes below 20%. The mechanical tests demonstrate a 46% increase in the elastic modulus and a 29% increase in the equilibrium modulus after 28-days of cell culture as compared to GF soaked in tissue culture medium for 24h. There was no significant difference in the amount of stress relaxation, however, the phase shift demonstrated a significant increase between pure GF and GF that had been soaked in tissue culture medium for 24h. Furthermore, we have shown that ATDC5 chondrocyte progenitor cells are viable on graphene foam and have identified the cellular contribution to the mechanical strength and viscoelastic properties of GF – tissue composites, with important implications for cartilage tissue engineering.

Electroactive Scaffolds for Neurogenesis and Myogenesis: Graphene‐Based Nanomaterials

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Prechondrogenic ATDC5 Cell Attachment and Differentiation on Graphene Foam; Modulation by Surface Functionalization with Fibronectin

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“…Following the functionalization, GF scaffolds were conditioned for 24 hours in cell culture medium. 49…”

“…The dynamic mechanical analysis was carried out using the Instron ElectroPuls E-10000 mechanical test system (Instron, Norwood, MA) using previously described methods. 49 In brief, at day 28, GF specimens (GF, GF + fibronectin, GF + fibronectin + cells) were subjected to cyclic preconditioning to 14% compression, quasi-static loading to 12% compression, 2 minutes of relaxation, and then 1 Hz cyclic compression at 1% amplitude, where compressive strain was calculated as the ratio of change in thickness to original thickness. The compressive elastic modulus, equilibrium modulus, stress relaxation, dynamic modulus, and phase shift were then calculated from the corresponding stress-strain waveform.…”

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