Characterization of thermomechanical behavior of skin tissue: I. Tensile and compressive behavior

Objective: This paper aims to characterize the tensile and compressive behaviors of skin tissue under different temperatures and to study the effect of temperature and corresponding dermal collagen denaturation on the mechanical properties of skin tissue. Methods: The uniaxial tensile and compressive tests of fresh pig ear skin under different temperatures have been performed by using two specifically-designed hydrothermal experimental systems. Results: In tensile tests, the skin stiffness decreases with increased temperature, while a contrary trend is observed in compressive tests. Conclusion: The results show that temperature has a great influence on both tensile and compressive properties of skin tissue, but the mechanisms are different. The variation of skin tensile properties is caused by the thermal denaturation of skin collagen with increased temperature, while the variation of skin compressive behavior of skin tissue may be due to the hydration change with thermal denaturation.