The mechanical properties of skin are important for a number of applications including surgery, dermatology, impact biomechanics and forensic science. In this study we have investigated the influence of location and orientation on the deformation characteristics of 56 samples of excised human skin. Uniaxial tensile tests were carried out at a strain rate of 0.012s −1 on skin from the back. Digital Image Correlation was used for 2D strain measurement and a histological examination of the dermis was also performed. The mean ultimate tensile strength (UTS) was 21.6±8.4MPa, the mean failure strain 54±17%, the mean initial slope 1.18±0.88MPa, the mean elastic modulus 83.3±34.9MPa and the mean strain energy was 3.6±1.6MJ/m 3 . A multivariate analysis of variance has shown that these mechanical properties of skin are dependent upon the orientation of Langer lines (P<0.0001-P=0.046). The location of specimens on the back was also found to have a significant effect on the UTS (P =0.0002), the elastic modulus (P=0.001) and the strain energy (P=0.0052). The histological investigation concluded that there is a definite correlation between the orientation of Langer Lines and the preferred orientation of collagen fibres in the dermis (P<0.001). The data obtained in this study will provide essential information for those wishing to model the skin using a structural constitutive model.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) occurs when local mechanical load exceeds certain tolerance levels for brain tissue. Extensive research has been done previously for brain matter experiencing compression at quasistatic loading; however, limited data is available to model TBI under dynamic impact conditions. In this research, an experimental setup was developed to perform unconfined compression tests and stress relaxation tests at strain rates ≤90/s. The brain tissue showed a stiffer response with increasing strain rates, showing that hyperelastic models are not adequate. Specifically, the compressive nominal stress at 30% strain was 8.83 ± 1.94, 12.8 ± 3.10 and 16.0 ± 1.41 kPa (mean ± SD) at strain rates of 30, 60 and 90/s, respectively. Relaxation tests were also conducted at 10%-50% strain with the average rise time of 10 ms, which can be used to derive time dependent parameters. Numerical simulations were performed using one-term Ogden model with initial shear modulus μ(o)=6.06±1.44, 9.44 ± 2.427 and 12.64 ± 1.227 kPa (mean ± SD) at strain rates of 30, 60 and 90/s, respectively. A separate set of bonded and lubricated tests were also performed under the same test conditions to estimate the friction coefficient μ, by adopting combined experimental-computational approach. The values of μ were 0.1 ± 0.03 and 0.15 ± 0.07 (mean ± SD) at 30 and 90/s strain rates, respectively, indicating that pure slip conditions cannot be achieved in unconfined compression tests even under fully lubricated test conditions. The material parameters obtained in this study will help to develop biofidelic human brain finite element models, which can subsequently be used to predict brain injuries under impact conditions.

Collagen fibres play an important role in the mechanical behaviour of many soft tissues. Modelling of such tissues now often incorporates a collagen fibre distribution. However, the availability of accurate structural data has so far lagged behind the progress of anisotropic constitutive modelling. Here, an automated process is developed to identify the orientation of collagen fibres using inexpensive and relatively simple techniques. The method uses established histological techniques and an algorithm implemented in the MATLAB image processing toolbox. It takes an average of 15 s to evaluate one image, compared to several hours if assessed visually. The technique was applied to histological sections of human skin with different Langer line orientations and a definite correlation between the orientation of Langer lines and the preferred orientation of collagen fibres in the dermis (p < 0.001, R(2) = 0.95) was observed. The structural parameters of the Gasser-Ogden-Holzapfel (GOH) model were all successfully evaluated. The mean dispersion factor for the dermis was κ = 0.1404±0.0028. The constitutive parameters μ, k(1) and k(2) were evaluated through physically-based, least squares curve-fitting of experimental test data. The values found for μ, k(1) and k(2) were 0.2014 MPa, 243.6 and 0.1327, respectively. Finally, the above model was implemented in ABAQUS/Standard and a finite element (FE) computation was performed of uniaxial extension tests on human skin. It is expected that the results of this study will assist those wishing to model skin, and that the algorithm described will be of benefit to those who wish to evaluate the collagen dispersion of other soft tissues.