Analysis on transient wave propagation in the soft matter of hydrogels

The precise control and structural design of the soft matter of the hydrogel subjected to dynamic loading require an in-depth understanding of its transient wave characteristics. However, for the complex solid–liquid coupling effects of the soft matter of hydrogels, the traditional single-phase wave model is no longer applicable. In this study, a transient wave propagation model that considers the solid–liquid coupling effects and its computational method is proposed. The wave-governing equations of hydrogels are derived based on the mass conservation and dynamic equilibrium equations, where the motions of solid and liquid phases are independently described. After transforming the governing equations into the equivalent weak form, numerical solutions for transient wave propagation in one- and two-dimensional hydrogels are calculated. The accuracy of the proposed model is verified by a comparison between semi-analytical and commercial finite element method solutions. We observe that the travelling and reflection processes of the two types of compression waves, P₁ and P₂, with different wave speeds are captured when the dynamic coefficient of permeability k_f increases. Furthermore, the influence of solid–liquid coupling effects on the transient responses of hydrogels is discussed. The results show that the hydrogels exhibit the dynamic characteristics of a single-phase medium to a certain extent when k_f is sufficiently small.