Biological tissues such as skin, tendons and muscles are flex - ible and are subjected to large deformations under mechanical loading. Silkworm silk is known to be a biocompatible material with absence of toxicity and immunogenicity in biological environments; moreover, due to its mechanical properties, it could be considered for monitoring the mechanical response of tissues. However, the realization of a silk based strain-gauge is challenging because such material is stiffer and less stretch - able than biological tissues. Here we propose the use of silicone rubber/silkworm silk composite to fab- ricate a strain gauge by using the fluorescent emission intensity of the silk fibers embedded in an elastomeric matrix to measure the deformation of the composite.
STRETCHABLE SILICONE RUBBER/SILK COMPOSITES
VALENTINI, LUCA
Writing – Original Draft Preparation
;BITTOLO BON, SILVIA;MUSSOLIN, LORENZO;
2017
Abstract
Biological tissues such as skin, tendons and muscles are flex - ible and are subjected to large deformations under mechanical loading. Silkworm silk is known to be a biocompatible material with absence of toxicity and immunogenicity in biological environments; moreover, due to its mechanical properties, it could be considered for monitoring the mechanical response of tissues. However, the realization of a silk based strain-gauge is challenging because such material is stiffer and less stretch - able than biological tissues. Here we propose the use of silicone rubber/silkworm silk composite to fab- ricate a strain gauge by using the fluorescent emission intensity of the silk fibers embedded in an elastomeric matrix to measure the deformation of the composite.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
