Self-Oscillating 3D Printed Hydrogel Shapes Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • AbstractBelousovZhabotinsky (BZ) reactions have been used to investigate periodic spatial patterns due to the oscillatory nature of the reaction. However, these systems have not been confined, nor controlled, in macroscaled architectures, making it hard to translate observations to natural behavior. Here, a poly(electrolyte) complex is designed that can be ionically or covalently reinforced to construct 3D geometries with additive manufacturing techniques. Printed geometries varied in shape, size, and angle to investigate spatiotemporal pattern formation in 3D. Size variations correlated to trends in oscillating pattern frequencies, demonstrating a geometry effect on spatial alterations. Overall, the combination of 3D printing techniques with selfoscillating chemical reactions allows to model, study, and further understand macroscale patterns observed in nature. The proposed approach can be used to design smart structure to replicate biological oscillators such as cardiac arrhythmias, neuron signaling, and camouflage skin patterns.

published proceedings

  • ADVANCED MATERIALS TECHNOLOGIES

author list (cited authors)

  • Nava-Medina, I. B., Gold, K. A., Cooper, S. M., Robinson, K., Jain, A., Cheng, Z., & Gaharwar, A. K.

citation count

  • 3

complete list of authors

  • Nava-Medina, Ilse B||Gold, Karli A||Cooper, Savannah M||Robinson, Kyle||Jain, Abhishek||Cheng, Zhengdong||Gaharwar, Akhilesh K

publication date

  • December 2021

publisher