3.8 Mechanical Properties
The mechanical properties, in particular compressive and tensile strength, are of great importance for the scaffolds that are to be used in tissue or organ engineering applications, especially when dealing with load-bearing structures. The compression and tension tests of the 3D printed SA/Gel and A-SA-Gel hydrogel scaffolds. The stress-strain curve is shown in Figure 6. Interestingly, the strain of A-SA-Gel hydrogel scaffold was higher than that of the SA/Gel scaffold. Moreover, the compressive strength of A-SA-Gel hydrogel scaffold exceeded 6 MPa, and the strain of A-SA-Gel hydrogel scaffold more than 55% (Figure 6, left panel). As for the tensile strength, the stress and strain of A-SA-Gel hydrogel scaffold were higher than that of SA/Gel scaffold (Figure 6, right panel). The maximum value of tensile stress in A-SA-Gel hydrogel scaffold was 0.221 MPa, while the SA/Gel scaffold was found to be 0.184 MPa. Also, the maximum strain of the A-SA-Gel hydrogel scaffold was found to be more than 450 %, which was higher than the A-SA-Gel hydrogel substrate.