PhD project: Understanding the link between microstructure and mechanical properties in hydrogels
Project description
Hydrogels are 3D crosslinked networks of polymers that can absorb and retain a large amount of water. Due to their high water content, structure, and mechanical properties, they have found use in many different fields, including biomedical applications (as a scaffold for tissue and bone regeneration, and wound dressing), biosensing, agriculture, drug delivery and in foods.
“Smart” hydrogels have been designed to change their properties in response to chemical and physical changes in their environment, and have been proposed for a variety of applications. Understanding the link between mechanical properties, responsiveness, and microstructure will be crucial in designing and applying new hydrogels or microgels (see for example Li, Li and Wang, Small, 2025).
How a hydrogel is made is one aspect that can affect its mechanical properties. Cryogelation is a process used to fabricate a certain type of hydrogel, known as cryogels, through controlled freeze-thaw cycling (see for example Jain, Zhang and Tiwari, ACS Omega, 2025). During freezing, ice crystals act as physical templates to concentrate and crosslink polymer chains. Thawing then reveals the final gels that are highly resilient and mechanically stable with an interconnected porous network. Therefore forming a detailed understanding of the effect of freezing, and different freezing parameters, on the microstructure and mechanical properties of a hydrogel is important.
In this project, you will use advanced imaging and mechanical testing techniques, including our Cryo FIB-SEM, to investigate the link between microstructure and mechanical properties in a variety of hydrogel systems. You will start by developing protocols and techniques to investigate the link in a cryogel system undergoing different freezing procedures. Once the protocols have been developed, you will then have the opportunity to apply those techniques to investigate the structure-function link in a different “smart” hydrogel system. This project may involve collaborations with computational experts within the soft matter physics group and polymer scientists in the chemistry department at the University of Edinburgh.
Project supervisors
- Dr Job Thijssen (School of Physics & Astronomy, University of Edinburgh)
- Dr Fraser Laidlaw (School of Physics & Astronomy, University of Edinburgh)
The project supervisors welcome informal enquiries about this project.
Find out more about this research area
The links below summarise our research in the area(s) relevant to this project:
- Find out more about Soft Matter Physics.
- Find out more about the Institute for Condensed Matter and Complex Systems.
What next?
- Find out how to apply for our PhD degrees.
- Find out about fees and funding and studentship opportunities.
- View and complete the application form (on the main University website).
- Find out how to contact us for more information.