Collagen self-assembly in the presence of nano-carbons: A structure-property relationship

A gel-spinning approach was used to form collagen-based fibers with loadings of both single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT) and carbon nano-chips (CNC) (i.e., short few-wall carbon nanotubes). Upon formation the fibers were dried and tested to analyze the influence of the nano-carbons on collagen self-assembly. Wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) studies show that the presence of the nano-carbon does not hinder collagen fibril formation. However, based on small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) analysis, collagen alignment is influence by the type of nano-carbon, and also indicates that dispersion quality of the nano-carbons plays a role on fibril alignment. Mechanical properties of all fibers are upwards of 4 GPa for the Young's Modulus and 0.2 GPa for the ultimate tensile strength. The nano-carbons are also found to provide additional mechanical reinforcement to the collagen.