Simulation of an Inverted Colloidal Crystalline Scaffold Using the Lattice Boltzmann Method

A relatively new and promising field in tissue engineering technology is the microgel scaffold. These scaffolds have been used recently to provide physiologically relevant research, and to culture cells in environments amicable to their growth. But what sort of environments does this imply, and what sort of conditions exist in these scaffolds that meet certain requirements for cell culturing? This project strives to answer these questions by a realistic simulation of one of such scaffolds. This simulation is achieved using the Lattice Boltzmann method for simulation of fluid flow. Qualities such as the velocity and components of the stress tensor are examined, and it has been found that the qualities of the scaffold provide environments which present a range of conditions that might be favorable to certain cell growth. As an example, bone growth, which can be stimulated in environments of high stress, can potentially be continuously nurtured in porous regions of a microgel scaffold, while regions remote from these pores can be subject to low magnitudes of stress at the same time.