Biodegradable Physical Hydrogel with Improved Mechanical Properties

The polymer (a large chain of molecules) under study is called poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). It has only two types of molecules (carbon and hydrogen) and is an amphiphillic copolymer, meaning it attracts both water and fat molecules. When temperature changes, this polymer can go from a liquid to a gel. This gel is unique, in that it is biodegradable and biocompatible (can be used in fields like tissue engineering as an injectable gel). The project focuses on preparing the polymer from another copolymer (poly(lactic acid) copolymer) and how the PEG polymer changes with temperature change. Another aspect of the project will be to see how the PEG polymer behaves under different loadings (stress, weight) or configurations.

Faculty Supervisor:

Jesse Zhu

Student:

Partner:

Zhejiang University

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Education

University:

Western University

Program: