Home▸Materials Science▸Hydrogel Swelling Dynamics Simulation

💧 Hydrogel Swelling Dynamics Simulation

Interactive 3D polymer-network hydrogel where adjusting crosslink density and solvent concentration shows the gel swelling or shrinking as osmotic and elastic forces reach equilibrium.

Materials Science3DModerate60 FPS💧 Water

A crosslinked polymer network swells or shrinks in 3D as osmotic pressure pulling solvent in and elastic restoring force from the crosslinks reach equilibrium.

🔬 What It Demonstrates

The equilibrium swelling ratio is set by a tug-of-war between the network's crosslink density (elastic resistance) and the polymer–solvent interaction (osmotic drive), following the logic of Flory–Rehner theory.

🎮 How to Use

Adjust crosslink density, solvent availability and temperature. Watch the lattice isotropically expand or contract toward its new equilibrium, and solvent particles flow in or out as the gel swells or shrinks.

💡 Did You Know?

Thermoresponsive hydrogels like PNIPAM swell in cool water but collapse abruptly above their lower critical solution temperature (~32°C), a property exploited in temperature-triggered drug-delivery devices.

⚙ Under the hood

Explore how hydrogel volume changes in response to alterations of crosslink density and solvent availability, observing the swelling or shrinking behavior through this interactive 3D polymer network simulation.

hydrogelswelling-mechanicspolymer-networksosmotic-pressurecrosslinkingmaterials-science

3D · Three.js / WebGL renderer · 60 FPS target · runs fully client-side, no install