Mechanical Properties and Material Characterization of Magneto-Thermal Sensitive Hydrogels

Abstract

When in an alternating magnetic field, magneto-thermal sensitive hydrogels can absorb solvent molecules, causing the gel network to swell several times to its original size. By conducting experiments with magnetic PNIPAm hydrogels (M-PNIPAm), the parameters of the theoretical model for magneto-thermal sensitive hydrogels were experimentally determined. Subsequently, the mechanical behavior of M-PNIPAm hydrogel was studied through finite element analysis and tensile experiments. The numerical calculations based on the thermodynamic model with specific parameters showed consistency with experimental results. The comparison indicated that the proposed theory for magneto-thermal sensitive hydrogels can accurately predict the mechanical property of M-PNIPAm hydrogel, providing theoretical support for investigating large deformation of magneto-thermal sensitive hydrogels. Furthermore, we discovered that the variation of magnetic particle content significantly influence the mechanics properties of hydrogel. Our findings provide valuable insights for the research and application of magneto-thermal sensitive hydrogels.