Prescribing patterns in growing tubular soft matter by initial residual stress
Congshan Liu,Zilong Han,Jian Li
Soft Matter Pub Date : 10/02/2019 00:00:00 , DOI:10.1039/C9SM01563A
Abstract

Initial residual stress is omnipresent in biological tissues and soft matter, and can affect growth-induced pattern selection significantly. Here we demonstrate this effect experimentally by letting soft tubes grow in the presence or absence of initial residual stress and by observing different growth pattern evolutions. These experiments motivate us to model the mechanisms at play when a growing bilayer tubular organ spontaneously displays buckling patterns on its inner surface. We demonstrate that not only differential growth, geometry and elasticity, but also initial residual stress distribution, exert a notable influence on these pattern phenomena. Prescribing an initial residual stress distribution offers an alternative or a more effective way to implement pattern selection for growable bio-tissues or soft matter. The results also show promise for the design of 4D bio-mimic printing protocols or for controlling hydrogel actuators.

Graphical abstract: Prescribing patterns in growing tubular soft matter by initial residual stress