Creating polymer hydrogel microfibres with internal alignment via electrical and mechanical stretching

Silk suture reinforced with Cefixime nanoparticles using polymer hydrogel (CFX@PVA); Preparation, Bacterial resistance and Mechanical properties

Objective(s): The objective of the current study was to prevent surgical site infection (SSI) by creating a new antibacterial silk suture. Methods: Cefixime trihydrate (CFX) was prepared as nanoparticles via mixing with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogel by covalent cross-linkage. The mixture was stirred vigorously to obtain a homogenous gel. Under this conditio...

Polymer chemistry and hydrogel systems

Internal mechanical response of a polymer in solution.

We observed single molecules of fluorescently labeled double-stranded (ds) lambda DNA held in an anti-Brownian electrokinetic trap. From the measured density fluctuations we extract the density-density response function of the molecule over times >4.5 ms and distances >250 nm, i.e., how a perturbation in density in one part of the molecule propagates through the rest of the molecule. We find a ...

Mechanical Stretching Devices

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Creating controlled thickness gradients in polymer thin films via flowcoating.

Flowcoating is a popular technique for generating thin (5-200 nm), substrate-supported polymer films. In this process, a reservoir of coating fluid is held between the horizontal substrate and a nearly horizontal blade above the substrate; a film of fluid is drawn out of the reservoir by moving the substrate. Accelerating the substrate produces a film with a thickness gradient, particularly use...