An international joint research team has developed a method to increase the adhesion of hydrogel adhesives with ultrasound. Courtesy of Ran Huo and Jianyu Li
An international joint research team has developed a technology to control the adhesion of a bandage with ultrasound and foam. It is a new adhesive technology that can be used even when it is difficult to use conventional adhesives, such as wet skin. The research results were published in the international academic journal ‘Science’ on the 12th.
An international joint research team, including the Fluid Dynamics Research Institute of the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH) in Switzerland and the University of British Columbia, Canada, tested adhesion by attaching the adhesive to the skin surface of pigs and mice. The adhesive is a hydrogel adhesive that combines nanoparticles such as chitosan, gelatin, and cellulose.
In this process, when ultrasonic waves are applied, a cavitation phenomenon in which air bubbles are temporarily generated in the liquid occurs, and a phenomenon in which molecules penetrate into the tissue occurred. A strong adhesion was created between the hydrogel adhesive and the tissue.
The method devised by the research team increased the adhesion between the adhesive and the skin 10 to 100 times. By utilizing this technology, it is also possible to control the adhesiveness, such as increasing the adhesive force specifically for a certain area that requires adhesion.
Outi Suffonen, a professor at ETH Hydrodynamics Institute in Switzerland, said, “Ultimately, the ultrasonic waves induce micro-bubbles to push the adhesive into the skin and create strong bioadhesion. It is also possible,” he said.
The results of this study also revealed the potential of adhesives as drug carriers that deliver drugs through the skin. Joo Hwa Gao, a professor of pathology and diagnostic laboratory medicine at the University of British Columbia in Canada, said, “It is a technology that changes the paradigm of medicine, and can be applied to precision medicine such as tissue regeneration or cancer treatment.”