Rheology

Rheology is the study of the flow of matter. Rheological measurements are quick, sensitive, the only require small sample sizes and reveal characteristics of the hydrogel such as its mechanical properties, gelation time and average pore size.

A rigid material has a high Young’s modulus (modulus of elasticity), because a high force is needed to deform such a material. A stiff material needs more force to be deformed compared to soft material. Therefore, the Young’s modulus is a measure of the stiffness of a solid material.

The rheometer can also be used to assess the viscoelastic properties of the precursor solution of hydrogels.