Influence of cell size gradients on the mechanical performance of bone scaffold

Abstract

A scaffold is the shape that allows regeneration and restoration of loose tissue from a bone fracture. Its shape specifically resembles that of porous human tissue as much as possible because the pores are very crucial for tissue penetration and proliferation. Generally, the design approach to develop a gradient design scaffold is a method to achieve a scaffold shape that is most similar to real human tissue. Therefore, the idea of this study was to design a cell scaffold shape with a uniform design method and grade cell sizes into 3 structures, axial, radius, and mixed cell size gradients of unit cells with circular geometry. A Finite Element Method (FEM) was used to analyze the deformation behaviors of the scaffold up to the failure point with a total strain of 5% to determine the geometry of the porous structure and create a scaffold that has suitable mechanical properties and a porosity of more than 80%. The results of the study revealed the C64 and CM model with increased surface area led to the highest elastic modulus compared to other structures. The findings provide guidance for design of bone tissue engineering to develop prosthetic organs that are more effective in treating patients.