Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Thermo-responsive hydrogels are smart materials that rapidly switch between hydrophilic (swollen) and hydrophobic (shrunken) states when heated past a threshold temperature, resulting in order-of-magnitude changes in gel volume. Modelling the dynamics of this switch is notoriously difficult and typically involves fitting a large number of microscopic material parameters to experimental data. In this paper, we present and validate an intuitive, macroscopic description of responsive gel dynamics and use it to explore the shrinking, swelling and pumping of responsive hydrogel displacement pumps for microfluidic devices. We finish with a discussion on how such tubular structures may be used to speed up the response times of larger hydrogel smart actuators and unlock new possibilities for dynamic shape change.
Source: Journal of Fluid Mechanics
DOI: 10.1017/jfm.2025.249
Institution: University of Warwick
Language: English
Subfield: Mechanical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,550
Funder: Leverhulme Trust
Awards: G4285754894, G8257337664
OpenAlex ID: W4410178422