Honors College Thesis
 

Mechanically Enhanced and Optically Compatible Hydrogels for Particle Image Velocimetry in Porous Flow

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https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/concern/honors_college_theses/3x816v845

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  • Hydrogels have been attractive for use as a medium in porous flow studies, but have always been limited in this role because of their poor mechanical properties. This project analyzes and tests two recently developed hydrogels, poly(methacrylamide-co-methacrylic acid) (PMM), and a heat-treated long chain PVA hydrogel. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) is the method of choice for porous flow experiments, so the indices of refraction (RI) of the hydrogel are matched to the fluid. Matching RI allows cameras to accurately track the particles in the flow despite the light passing through multiple solid/fluid interfaces. Hydrogels offer multiple advantages in a porous flow experiment, including better approximation of environmental flows, opportunities for customization, and cheap and safe working fluids. Because hydrogels have high water content, they can be RI matched with water with dissolved sucrose. While previous hydrogel based PIV experiments have worked to accommodate the poor mechanical properties of hydrogels, PMM and annealed polyvinyl alcohol hydrogels were chosen for their strength and transparency. Refractive index matching and compression testing were conducted, followed by a cross-comparison of properties to recommend PMM hydrogel for the experiment. Stiffnesses of 48.15 kPa and 48.7 MPa are reported for PVA and PMM hydrogels, respectively.
  • Keywords: refractive index, hydrogels, porous flow, mechanical properties
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