Identification and test of silicones and mimetisable hydrogels with respect to live tissues

Surgeries can seem firstly hard to perform;this is why practices on perfect copies of the organs may increase greatly the chances of the surgeon to manage. The present study examined different hydrogels as good candidates to mimic living organs such as heart or liver in terms of physical appearance but also properties. These materials shall be suitable for 3D printing, method chosen to obtain phantom organs from patient data. Two types of trials have been led. The first part is focused on the suitability of these materials to be used as ink to print organs by Direct Ink Writing.The second part studied the behaviour and the properties of the living organs and the materials selected through mechanical tests as DMA or hardness.It has been proved that from all the hydrogels chosen, two seem to be more suitable, PVA and Phytagel. Mechanical trials highlighted a similar behaviour of organs and phytagel. The conclusions about the project are mixed as the found materials may be suitable but some obstacles as material problems have also been encountered. For instance, as they are hydrogels, they are mainly composed of water that vanishes while drying and causes a loss of volume. This has to be taken into account.Incomin