Effects of Extrusion and Irradiation on the Mechanical Properties of a Water–Collagen Solution

This article describes 1D extension tests on bovine collagen samples (8% collagen in water). At such a high collagen concentration, the mechanical properties of semi-solid samples can be approximated by hyperelastic models (two-parametric HGO and Misof models were used), or simply by Hooke’s law and the modulus of elasticity E. The experiments confirm a significant increase in the E-modulus of the samples irradiated with high-energy electrons. The modulus E ~ 9 kPa of non-irradiated samples increases monotonically up to E ~ 250 kPa for samples absorbing an e-beam dose of ~3300 Gy. This amplification is attributed to the formation of cross-links by irradiation. However, E-modulus can be increased not only by irradiation but also by exposure to a high strain rate. For example, soft isotropic collagen extruded through a 200 mm long capillary increases the modulus of elasticity from 9 kPa to 30 kPa, and the increase is almost isotropic. This stiffening occurs when the corrugated collagen fibers are straightened and are aligned in the flow direction. It seems that the permanent structural changes caused by extrusion mitigate the effects of the ex post applied irradiation. Irradiation of extruded samples by 3300 Gy increases the modulus of E-elasticity only three times (from 30 kPa to approximately 90 kPa). Extruded and ex post irradiated samples show slight anisotropy (the stiffness in the longitudinal direction is on an average greater than the transverse stiffness).