Bacterial cellulose nanocrystal hydrogels for 3D printing applications

• Grant number: 23/11382-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: December 16, 2023
• End date: March 19, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Physical-Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Sidney José Lima Ribeiro
• Grantee: Luygui Gaspardo Silva
• Supervisor: Gilberto Antonio de Freitas Siqueira
• Host Institution: Instituto de Química (IQ). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Araraquara. Araraquara , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, Dubendorf, Switzerland
• Associated to the scholarship: 21/09352-3 - Biopolymer-based hydrogels containing magnetic nanoparticles for application in 4D printing, BP.IC

Abstract

The alignment of nanocellulose could allow the hydrogel materials to mimic other biologic materials, changing their structure and properties. During the BEPE internship, we will design and characterize biopolymer-based hydrogel based on Fibroin/Bacterial cellulose nanocrystals/Gelan. We will prepare inks with varied bacterial cellulose nanocrystal contents and we will use the direct ink write (DIW) approach to fabricate the bionanocomposites.We will optimize the rheological properties of the inks to enable the alignment of bacterial cellulose nanocrystals (BCNC) within the printing filaments as well as to control the hydrogels' mechanical and structural properties. Our goal is to prepare synthetic materials that closely mimic the anisotropic features found in other biological materials such as bone and wood. Finally, the morphological properties of BCNC nanocomposites will be characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), rheology, optical microscopy (OM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). (AU)