3D Printing of Synthetic Organs: Mechanical Testing and Manufacturing Characterization of Blood Vessels

The field of biomedical engineering has seen transformative advancements with the introduction of 3D printing technology, particularly in the fabrication of synthetic organs. This study focuses on the mechanical testing of 3D-printed synthetic organs and material characterization to assess their performance in medical applications. Through using printing design, materials and techniques, synthetic organs can be produced with high precision, mimicking the complex structures and mechanical properties of natural tissues. This research investigates the mechanical property such as tensile strength, of different types of synthetic biomaterials such as resin, TPU materials and the printing accuracy of the blood vessel. The samples were prepared with dumbbell shape and subjected to uniaxial tensile tests according to the ASTM D412 standard. The data obtained from the tensile test is further analyzed using the Curve Fitter 2022 tool, the curve is plotted using the Uniaxial tensile test data, and the hyper-elastic model is applied to the study. Hyper-elastic models are used to describe the non-linear stress-strain behavior of these materials. Two prominent hyper-elastic models were used: the Yeoh 3rd order model and the Ogden 3rd order model and the constants of the model were calculated. Both models offer detailed mathematical frameworks for predicting the mechanical response of materials under large deformations, although the TPU material has a better elongation property than resin, making it good for applications requiring elasticity and resilience. The data helps in understanding how both materials behave under different stress and strain conditions at the same room temperature, which is important for designing flexible biomaterials that can withstand stress. However, it was observed that Yeoh model was better fitted for the test data compared to the Ogden model. The findings aim to enhance the understanding of material behavior under physical conditions, thereby informing the design and development of reliable synthetic organs. The results of this work are to contribute significantly to the fields of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, ultimately improving patient outcomes in organ transplantation and repair.