Linking cavitation and fracture to molecular scale structural damage of model networks

Rapid expansion of soft solids subjected to a negative hydrostatic stress can occur through cavitation or fracture. Understanding how these two mechanisms relate to a material's molecular structure is important to applications in materials characterization, adhesive design, and tissue damage. Here, a recently improved needle-induced cavitation (NIC) protocol is applied to a set of model end-linked PEG gels with quantitatively linked elastic and fracture properties. This quantitative link between molecular scale structure and macroscopic properties is exploited to experimentally probe the relationship between cavitation, fracture, and molecular scale damage. This work indicates that rational tuning of the elastofracture length relative to the crack geometry can be used to alter the expansion mechanism from cavitation to fracture during NIC.

Automated summary

This study investigates the relationship between the molecular structure of materials and their expansion mechanism. The results show that the expansion mechanism can be altered by adjusting the ratio between the elastofracture length and the crack geometry under specific conditions.