MRI: Acquisition of a Hyper-Frequency Viscoelastic Spectroscopy Instrument for Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research and Education

该NSF核磁共振奖用于购买一台用于材料表征的超高频粘弹性光谱仪(HFVS)。它特别适合于测量生物组织和人造聚合物的粘弹性性质，因为它可以在宽激发频率范围内对小样本进行非接触、无损测量。HFVS仪器将立即用于五个目前的研究项目：1)创伤性脑损伤的计算机模拟；2)确定主动力和被动力在微血管网络形成中的作用；3)非驱动腿部运动的动态表征；4)微型飞行器栖息式起落架的设计和制造；以及5)可生物降解、生物兼容的共聚物的表征。在每个项目中使用该仪器最重要的贡献是：1)适合于爆炸响应模拟和分析的高应变率下人脑组织的构成模型；2)用于研究主动和被动机械环境对细胞影响的新的细胞外基质仿生学；3)材料可调的、用于微尺度机器人的欠驱动腿部运动的动力学模型；4)可调的刚度和阻尼，用于栖息起落架机构的聚合物制造工艺；以及5)用于控制一类医用环保型共聚聚合物的性能的制造工艺。除了支持正在进行的研究，该仪器还将使未来涉及相关材料的研究成为可能，并将在生物工程、材料科学和机械工程领域开辟新的研究领域。HFVS仪器将极大地增强奥林学院的计量能力，使其能够通过定量测量机械硬度和能量耗散相关特性来表征从非常柔顺的、接近液体的(例如凝胶)到非常坚硬的材料。材料的表征在广泛的研究问题中起着不可或缺的作用，特别是那些包括计算机模拟和涉及给定材料的部件或结构的定制设计和制造的问题。高频视频测定仪的收购将对俄林学院S的科研能力、本科科研人才培养力度和课程设置产生重大的积极影响。该仪器将直接支持奥林学院本科生的培训和教育，该学院约45%的学生和55%的生物工程、材料科学和机械工程专业的学生是女性。整个课程中的研究培训直接纳入基于项目和基于实验室的课程。在学年和暑假期间，学生们有许多与教师合作的个人研究机会。该仪器将在许多课程中具体使用，并将在高年级工程基础课程中特别有用，在该课程中，学生团队处理行业赞助的项目。

This NSF MRI award funds the acquisition of a hyper-frequency viscoelasticspectroscopy (HFVS) instrument for materials characterization. It is especially well suited formeasuring viscoelastic properties of biological tissues and artificial polymers because it canmake non-contacting, non-destructive measurements on small-sized samples over a wideexcitation frequency range. The HFVS instrument will be immediately used in five currentresearch projects: 1) computational simulation of traumatic brain injury; 2) determining the roleof active and passive forces in microvascular network formation; 3) dynamic characterization ofunderactuated legged locomotion, 4) design and fabrication of perching landing gear for microaerialvehicles, and 5) characterization of a biodegradable, biocompatible co-polymer. The mostsignificant contribution resulting from use of the instrument on each project is: 1) constitutivemodels for human brain tissue at high strain rates appropriate for blast-response simulation andanalysis; 2) characterization of a new extra-cellular matrix biomimetics for studying the effectsof both active and passive mechanical environments on cells, 3) material-tunable, dynamicmodels of underactuated legged locomotion for milli-scale robots, 4) tunable-stiffness and ?damping, polymer fabrication processes for perching landing gear mechanisms, and 5)manufacturing processes for controlling the properties of a class of environmentally-friendly, copolymersfor medical applications. In addition to supporting ongoing research, the instrumentwill enable future research involving related materials and will open new research areas inbioengineering, material science, and mechanical engineeringThe HFVS instrument will substantially enhance metrology capabilities at Olin College enablingthe characterization of materials ranging in stiffness from very compliant, nearly liquid (e.g.,gels) to very rigid by quantitative measurement of mechanical stiffness and energy dissipationrelated properties. The characterization of materials plays an integral part in a wide range ofresearch problems especially those including computer simulations and the custom design andmanufacturing of components or structures involving the given materials. The acquisition of aHFVS instrument will have significant positive impact on Olin College?s research capability,undergraduate research training efforts, and curriculum. The instrument will directly support thetraining and education of undergraduates at Olin College where approximately 45% of studentsand 55% of the bioengineering, material science, and mechanical engineering majors are women.Research training is incorporated throughout the curriculum directly into project-based andlaboratory-based coursework. Students have numerous individual research opportunities to workwith faculty during the academic year and in the summer. The instrument will be specificallyutilized in a number of courses and will be particularly useful in the senior-year, engineeringcapstone course in which student teams tackle industry-sponsored projects.