A High Coordination of Cross-Links Is Beneficial for the Strength of Cross-Linked Fibers
1
Faculty of Physics, University of Vienna, Boltzmanngasse 5, 1090 Vienna, Austria
2
Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Osteology at the Hanusch Hospital of WGKK and AUVA Trauma Centre Meidling, 1st Medical Department Hanusch Hospital, Heinrich Collin Strasse 30, 1140 Vienna, Austria
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Biomimetics 2019, 4(1), 12; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics4010012
Received: 20 November 2018 / Revised: 18 January 2019 / Accepted: 22 January 2019 / Published: 4 February 2019
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biogenic and Bioinspired Self-Healing Materials)
The influence of the coordination of (reversible) cross-links on the mechanical properties of aligned fiber bundles is investigated. Two polymeric systems containing cross-links of different coordination (two- and three-fold coordination) but having the same binding energy are investigated. In particular, the response to loading of these systems is compared. Mechanical parameters (strength, stiffness and work-to-fracture) are obtained by computational loading tests. The influence of coordination is studied for simple test systems with pre-defined topologies that maximize strength as well as for more realistic fiber bundles containing nine chains. The results show that a higher coordination of cross-links has a beneficial effect on the strength and the stiffness of the systems, while the work-to-fracture was found larger for the system having a smaller coordination of cross-links. It can be concluded that controlling the coordination of cross-links is a versatile tool to specifically tailor the mechanical properties of polymeric structures.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Shabbir, H.; Dellago, C.; Hartmann, M.A. A High Coordination of Cross-Links Is Beneficial for the Strength of Cross-Linked Fibers. Biomimetics 2019, 4, 12.
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