We are excited to share that Dr. Ecker has received the prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER award to conduct research on Shape Memory Polymers as Biomaterial.
CAREER: The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a Foundation-wide activity that offers the National Science Foundation’s most prestigious awards in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. Activities pursued by early-career faculty should build a firm foundation for a lifetime of leadership in integrating education and research.
NSF Website
This CAREER project aims to elucidate the underlying mechanism of the plasticization-induced shape memory effect of thiol-ene based polymers. The model application for this material will be a heat shrink tubing that can shrink at bodily conditions (37° C and simulated body fluids) and can be used to seal colonic anastomosis. The specific three aims are to (1) Systematically investigate the effect of crosslink-density and chain extender length on the plasticization-induced shape memory effect of thiol-ene based polymers. Mechanical and thermomechanical measurements inside simulated body fluids will be used to assess shape memory properties and structure-property relationships. (2) Understand the relationship between material thickness, degree of shape-programming, and radial recovery forces of tube-shaped SMPs to determine optimal design parameters for sufficient shape recovery using the heat shrink tube model. (3) Demonstrate the functionality of a biomedical heat shrink tube that utilizes the plasticization-induced shape recovery through an ex vivo colon anastomosis model and quantify mechanical and sealing properties. The proposed research will advance science by filling the gap in the structure-property relationship of thiol-ene based SMPs that utilize plasticization for their shape recovery, which is essential for designing future devices. In addition, this innovative biomaterial will allow the broader research community to develop novel biomedical devices tailored to specific tissues and applications. Educational and outreach activities will be implemented to raise excitement, awareness, and interest in the emerging field of smart polymeric biomaterials. These will include a gender- and ethnicity-matched mentor-mentee program, training students from underrepresented groups in the PI’s laboratory, incorporating research discoveries into coursework, and communicating research to the general public at local science slam events.
Here is a link to the full abstract