Open PhD position: Bio-aerogels for Biomedical Applications Using Additive Manufacturing and Numerical Simulation

Wound-related health problems will be accentuated in the years to come because of the aging of the population whereby the prevalence of wounds, especially chronic wounds, will increase. The management of wounds will therefore remain a major challenge. Despite the progress in this field, high performance wound healing materials are still highly sought after.

The goals of the project are 1) to prepare advanced functional materials, bio-aerogels, to be used as 3D printed wound dressings and 2) to understand and optimize the printing process using numerical modelling.

Bio-aerogels are emerging class of bio-based materials; they are nanostructured and highly porous. In our laboratory we develop aerogels based on polysaccharides which are very promising materials for life science applications. In this work new bio-aerogels will be developed combining controlled meso- and macroporosity, on-demand shape, controlled release of drugs and absorption of excess blood, plasma and other fluids. The analyses will be conducted through a mixed approach combining experiments, modelling and 3D numerical simulations.

The bio-aerogels will be prepared from cellulose based polymers, which are used in biomedical field. These polysaccharide solutions will be printed and transformed into bio-aerogels. 3D printing experimental work will be accompanied by non-Newtonian fluid mechanics modelling and 3D numerical simulations in order to understand shaping and predict the best printing conditions.