LEE- Tekstil Mühendisliği-Yüksek Lisans
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ÖgeDeveloping filters for laundry machines to prevent microfiber release(Graduate School, 2025-01-27) Sakmar, Gökçe ; Eniş Yalçın, İpek ; Sezgin, Hande ; 503221806 ; Textile EngineeringMicroplastics (MPs) represent one of the most pervasive environmental pollutants in the modern era, with profound implications for ecosystems and human health. Among these, microplastic fibers originating from synthetic textiles during laundering are a particularly significant source of pollution. These fibers are released during washing cycles, bypass standard wastewater treatment processes due to their small size, and accumulate in aquatic, terrestrial, and even atmospheric environments. The resulting contamination poses risks not only to marine life but also to human health, as these fibers enter food chains, water supplies, and the air creatures breathe. If current trends persist, it is projected that over 22 million tons of synthetic fibers will be discharged into the environment by 2050, making this a critical environmental and public health issue. This thesis tackles the urgent problem of microplastic fiber pollution by focusing on the design, development, and optimization of textile-based filtration systems for household washing machines. The primary objective is to prevent the release of microplastic fibers into wastewater at their source. Unlike broad strategies that target post-discharge remediation or changes in textile production, this study emphasizes source reduction through effective filtration mechanisms integrated into washing machines. By leveraging advancements in textile engineering, the research identifies optimal materials, structural configurations, and designs that maximize microplastic fiber capture without compromising the functionality of washing machines. The thesis commences with a comprehensive review of the literature, which underscores the environmental significance of microplastics, particularly those derived from textiles. Microplastic fibers, which account for 34.8% of global microplastic pollution, are released during the washing of synthetic garments, such as polyester and polyamide, which constitute a significant portion of global textile production. A single wash cycle can shed hundreds of thousands to millions of fibers, which subsequently evade conventional wastewater treatment and infiltrate natural environments. These fibers are not only ingested by marine and terrestrial organisms but have also been detected in human food sources, drinking water, and the air, posing significant health risks such as oxidative stress, hormonal disruption, and even cancer. The environmental review also highlights the limitations of existing filtration systems. While some commercially available products, such as Guppyfriend bags and Cora Balls, capture a fraction of the fibers during laundering, they are insufficient to address the magnitude of the problem. Similarly, current wastewater treatment plants are only partially effective in removing microplastic fibers, especially the smallest particles. Consequently, integrating filtration systems directly into washing machines emerges as a practical and impactful solution. The experimental section of this thesis focuses on developing and testing woven textile-based filters designed specifically for household washing machines. Key variables examined include yarn structure, number of filaments, weave pattern, and weft density. These parameters were selected for their significant impact on filtration efficiency, durability, and compatibility with washing machine operations. Twelve fabric samples were produced using three different types of polyester yarns (monofilament, 36-filament multifilament, and 96-filament multifilament) and assessed for physical and functional properties, including basis weight, thickness, tensile strength, tear strength, stiffness, air permeability, and vacuum filtration efficiency. The samples were manufactured with plain and 2/2 twill weaves at two different weft densities (33 and 17 picks/cm). Additionally, surface morphologies were examined using scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results showed that increasing weft density led to higher basis weight and thickness across all samples. While twill weave fabrics generally exhibited slightly higher basis weight than plain weaves, the differences were not statistically significant. Twill weave fabrics consistently demonstrated greater thickness than plain weaves, attributed to the float structure in twill weaves that creates a looser and bulkier fabric. For tensile strength, plain weaves outperformed twill weaves due to their higher interlacing points, and an increase in yarn count further enhanced tensile strength. Regarding tear strength, loosely constructed fabrics with fewer interlacing points exhibited higher resistance in twill weaves as yarns moved and bunched together under force. Twill weave structures also had higher air permeability due to their more open structure. This research also explored broader considerations in filter design, including the influence of yarn type (monofilament vs. multifilament). Monofilament yarns, characterized by their smooth surfaces, exhibited advantages in terms of durability but were less effective at capturing smaller particles. In contrast, multifilament yarns, with their higher surface areas, demonstrated greater filtration efficiency but were prone to clogging and reduced throughput. The study concluded that an optimal filter design would likely involve a hybrid approach that combines the strengths of both yarn types. Stiffness tests confirmed that monofilament yarns exhibited greater rigidity than multifilament yarns, while air permeability tests showed higher values for twill weave and monofilament fabrics. These findings underscore the critical influence of fabric structure, yarn type, and weft density on both filtration efficiency and physical durability. Vacuum filtration tests revealed that plain weave fabrics had superior microplastic retention compared to twill weaves, owing to their compact structure and smaller pore sizes. The highest filtration efficiency, 96.60%, was achieved by the plain weave sample P36T-33-P, made with 36-filament yarns at a weft density of 33 picks/cm. This was followed by its twill counterpart P36T-33-T (92.87%) and the plain weave sample P36T-17-P (92.30%). Monofilament fabrics generally demonstrated filtration efficiencies below 90%. Results of the experiments revealed that woven filters with tighter structures and higher densities demonstrated superior microfiber retention capabilities. However, these configurations also may pose challenges such as increased pressure drop and reduced mechanical durability, necessitating a careful balance between filtration efficiency and operational practicality. The thesis further contextualizes its findings within the broader landscape of microplastic pollution mitigation. The research also emphasizes the need for regulatory action to mandate the inclusion of effective filtration systems in new washing machines, as proposed by the European Union's recent initiatives on plastic pollution. In addition to its scientific contributions, this thesis underscores the potential for academia-industry partnerships in addressing global environmental challenges. The research was conducted in collaboration with industry stakeholders, leveraging their resources and expertise to develop practical, scalable solutions. The findings are not only relevant to the academic community but also offer actionable insights for manufacturers, policymakers, and environmental organizations working to mitigate the impacts of microplastic pollution. In conclusion, this thesis marks an important progress in addressing microplastic pollution by presenting a scientifically supported and practical approach to a critical environmental challenge. By integrating textile engineering principles with real-world applications, the research offers a pathway for reducing microfiber emissions at their source, thereby contributing to the broader goal of preserving environmental and public health. The innovative filtration systems proposed in this study have the potential to transform household laundry practices and set a new standard for sustainable textile management.
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ÖgeFabrication and characterization of biodegradable fibrous webs for vascular graft structures(Graduate School, 2022-01-10) Öztemur, Janset ; Eniş Yalçın, İpek ; 503181804 ; Textile Engineering ; Tekstil MühendisliğiCardiovascular diseases are among the most common types of non-infectious diseases, causing approximately 20 million deaths worldwide to date. Deaths caused by cardiovascular diseases, triggered by the increase in the stress level brought about by settling from rural to urban at the global level and the spread of unhealthy eating habits, increased by 21.1% between 2007 and 2017. According to the World Health Organization data, it is estimated that the annual incidence of cardiovascular disease-related mortality will increase to 23.6 million worldwide by 2030. On the other hand, while the Covid-19 pandemic, which affected the entire world, caused an unexpected increase in cardiovascular diseases, the fact that people with these types of diseases were among the ones defined as a high-risk group once again revealed the seriousness of the situation. Mild cardiovascular diseases are treated with dietary modification, lifestyle changes, and medications, while treatment options for more damaged blood vessels usually consist of bypassing a part of the autologous vessel to replace the diseased part. The use of autologous vessels requires an additional clinical procedure such as vascular integration to the damaged area, as well as taking veins from certain parts of the body such as leg vein, forearm artery, and thoracic artery for this procedure. In addition to the aforementioned risks, dimensional incompatibilities may also occur in some cases. For this reason, the necessity of finding alternative solutions in order to overcome these problems experienced in autologous vessels is among the prominent issues in recent years. Although allografts taken from donors or cadavers and xenografts procured from animals are alternatives, they cannot fully meet this need due to the lack of donor/incompatibility and their short lifespan. Replacing the damaged vessel with a vascular graft in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases is one of the preferred methods of recent times, but problems such as infection formation, risk of thrombosis, incompatibility in radial elasticity, inadequacy in cell development, especially in small-caliber vessel changes, limit surgical success. At this point, the search for new materials and constructions has come to the fore, and the design of biodegradable scaffolds that can be replaced by an autograft produced by the body over time has taken its place among the priority research topics. Although important findings have been obtained in the research that has accelerated in the last 10 years, there is no small-caliber biodegradable vascular graft that has achieved commercial success yet. In order to meet the need, it is expected from the vascular graft to provide structural support and encourage cellular activity for the body to produce its vessel. The most important step in approximating vascular grafts designs to native blood vessel structure is to optimize the surface morphology and develop a microenvironment in which cells can attach and proliferate. For this reason, the features of the graft surface should be well understood and morphological criteria should be determined. Within this thesis, a detailed literature review is realized to understand the native artery structure and an experimental study is carried in three parts including the selection of biopolymers, optimization of solution and production parameters, and morphological, structural, thermal, and chemical analyses of the structures. The first experimental part of the thesis is a preliminary study that includes the selection of biomaterials as well as optimization of solution parameters (polymer concentration and blend ratio) and production parameters (feed rate, voltage, and tip-collector distance). A literature review is performed for surfaces produced by electrospinning using low molecular weight polycaproclactone (PCL) and polylactic acid (PLA) polymers as part of this investigation. The affects of parameters like molecular weight, concentration, and blending ratio on surface morphology, smooth fiber production, and fiber diameter parameters are examined during the research work. Electrospinning parameters are systematically studied, and the influences of these parameters on fiber production are determined. Basic parameters such as voltage, feed rate, and tip-collector distance have been optimized in this context by considering the environment's temperature and humidity, as well as the characteristics of the polymer solution. In the first stage, PCL at 16, 18, and 20 % concentrations, PLA at 7, 8, and 9% concentrations and 12% concentration of PLA/PCL (25/75 and 50/50 ratios) are used for surface formation. In this context, a definite conclusion is reached about the polymers to be used in the thesis by evaluating the performances of the determined parameters in the fibrous surface formation process and the morphological properties analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM); furthermore, polymer solution concentration ranges and blending ratio are determined. The results indicate that the spinnability of low molecular weight PCL (45,000 Mn) is insufficient since either bead formation or thick and discontinuous fiber-like forms are observed in all polymer concentrations while neat PLA and PLA/PCL blends have better spinnability, which allows smooth fiber production. In the second part of the thesis, higher molecular weight PCL (80,000 Mn) is introduced to the fibrous webs in order to take the advantage of its better mechanical properties and spinnability. Similar to the preliminary part, PCL, PLA and PCL/PLA blends are studied, but polymer concentration ranges are kept constant as 6, 8, and 10% for all polymeric structures. The morphologies of the electrospun webs are observed by SEM, also fiber diameter and porosity values are measured. Thus, the polymer concentration at which smooth and fine fibers are obtained is determined for neat PLA and PCL in addition to PLA/PCL blends. The hydrophobicity of the surfaces is evaluated by water contact angle analysis (WCA). Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is used to observe the thermal behavior of the surfaces during heating and cooling to investigate the crystallinity of the surfaces that provide insights about biodegradability processes. Although it is not possible to obtain fibers at low polymer concentrations on all polymeric surfaces, 8%, and 10% polymer concentration allow continuous fiber formation; moreover, an expected relationship between fiber diameter and porosity ratio is detected. Surfaces with the finest fibers are those with the highest porosity. On the other hand, the thermal behavior of the surfaces is in line with the literature and the highest crystallinity is that of PCL with about 40%. In the last and final part of the thesis, poly (L-lactide) (PLLA), a derivative of PLA, is also introduced in the study, and its effects on surface properties are investigated. Within the scope of developing the most suitable surface for vascular grafts, which is one of the major objectives of the study, different blending ratios for both PLA/PCL and PLLA/PCL are determined in detail. Similar to previous experimental parts, the structures are mainly subjected to SEM, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and DSC analyses, and the effects of blend ratios on morphological, thermal, and chemical properties are investigated in details. It has been observed that the fiber diameter increases with the increase of the ratio of PLA, which has a high molecular weight, in the PCL structure, but the increase in the ratio of PLLA, which has a lower molecular weight than PCL, in the PCL structure causes a decrease in fiber diameter. It has been determined that the polymer ratio is very effective on the fiber diameter depending on the molecular weight of the polymers, and during the thermal analysis, it determines the characteristic curves in the heating and cooling processes. Selected samples of PLA100, PCL100, PLA20PCL80, PLA50PCL50, PLLA20PCL80, and PLLA50PCL50 are subjected to biodegradability analysis at 1st, 3rd, and 5th months. All samples except PLA20PCL80 showed an increase in degradation rate in consecutive months. It is thought that this exception ocuurs in the PLA20PCL80 because of the measurement accuracy. As expected and as seen in the literature research, the degradation rate of PLA (14.29% and 40%, respectively) at the end of the 3rd and 5th months is considerably higher than that of PCL (2.17% and 3.70%, respectively). On the other hand, it is observed that 50% PLA ratio in the blend considerably increases the weight loss of the surface. Moreover, the addition of PLLA on surfaces is also found to accelerate biodegradation, similar to PLA. Cell analysis (MTS) consists of the proliferation of fibroblast and human umbilical vessel endothelial cells (HUVECs), which are one of the basic cells of the native vascular structure. In the content of MTS cellular analysis, affirmative outcomes are obtained in both fibroblast cells and HUVECs compared to control samples, and it is observed that each surface is a suitable environment for cells to live. Besides, PLA appears to have a positive effect on cell viability on PCL up to 20%, and the highest cell proliferation occurred in the PLA20PCL80 sample. The findings of the experimental studies as detailed in the three stages above shed light on the best way to examine the morphological, chemical, thermal, and biological properties of a wide variety of surfaces produced from PLA, PLLA, and PCL polymers. Surfaces designed and fabricated according to the optimized parameters are promising for layered vascular graft structures. In the studies that will take place in the thesis' continuation, small-caliber vessel grafts will be designed and fabricated from these optimized surfaces with desired orientation levels, taking into account the mechanical properties of the vessels and advanced cell activities both in-vitro and in-vivo.
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ÖgeInvestigation of mechanical properties of small caliber fibrous vascular grafts(Graduate School, 2023) Özdemir, Suzan ; Eniş Yalçın, İpek ; 817996 ; Textile Engineering ProgramCardiovascular diseases remain the most common cause of mortality worldwide, resulting in the deaths of 17.9 million people in 2019. Furthermore, previous cardiovascular diseases are a significant risk factor for COVID-19-related complications and deaths. According to the World Health Organization, the number of deaths would increase by 24.5% by 2030. The most frequent type of cardiovascular disease is coronary artery disease, which necessitates a surgical procedure called bypass grafting that involves arterial replacement. In bypass surgery, an autologous vein or synthetic graft is used to restore a diseased blood vessel that has become damaged or clogged. However, autologous grafts pose significant challenges due to scarcity and difficulties in graft harvesting operations. On the other hand, commercial synthetic ones are also problematic to be used as smaller diameter vascular grafts (< 6 mm) due to poor patency rates, thrombogenicity, and compliance mismatches, as well as neointimal hyperplasia in the peri-anastomotic regions. The compliance mismatch between the native vessel and the rigid synthetic graft at the anastomosis sites results in low blood flow rates and turbulent blood flow in small-diameter grafts. These mechanical issues lead to thrombosis and luminal narrowing due to intimal hyperplasia, which results in poor long-term patency, together with the thrombogenicity of the scaffold material and a lack of endothelialization. In order to address the demand for suitable scaffolds that can be utilized in bypass procedures by using new materials and production processes, researchers have concentrated on building an alternative tissue-engineered small-caliber vascular graft that can imitate the native artery in all ways. There is currently no small-caliber biodegradable vascular graft that has reached commercial success, despite the fact that significant breakthroughs have been made in the research that has intensified in recent years. The vascular graft is supposed to give structural support and promote cellular activity for the body to generate its vessels. The fundamental difficulty with vascular tissue engineering is still creating a perfect vascular graft that can replicate the structural, biological, and mechanical characteristics of the native blood vessels and be used in place of the disabled blood vessel. In this context, morphology and cellular analysis are typically given top priority, whereas mechanical aspects are only briefly discussed. To improve the clinical performance of vascular grafts, expose physiological stresses, and prevent graft failure brought on by intimal hyperplasia, thrombosis, aneurysm, blood leakage, and occlusion, it is essential to create grafts with good mechanical qualities comparable to native vessels. The mechanical characteristics of scaffolds, such as compliance, burst pressure, nonlinear elasticity, modulus, and suture retention strength, must match those of the native tissues because even a slight mechanical mismatch between the graft and the native vessel can cause graft failure. The mechanical properties of the vascular grafts are significantly influenced by the material and design. In this thesis, a detailed literature review was carried out to understand the native blood vessel structure and to provide a broad and comparative overview of recent studies on the mechanical properties of fibrous vascular grafts, with an emphasis on the effect of structural parameters on mechanical behavior in the experimental part. The purpose is to shed light on the design parameters needed to maintain the mechanical stability of vascular grafts that can be used as a temporary and biodegradable backbone, allowing an autologous vessel to take its place. An experimental study is carried out to produce fibrous vascular scaffolds made out of various biopolymers and their combinations with different fiber orientations and constructions and assess their physical, morphological, and mechanical properties. The first experimental part of the thesis is a preliminary study that includes the production of planar and tubular scaffolds made of neat PCL and PLA and their blends with the PCL/PLA blending ratios of 90/10, 80/20, 70/30, 60/40, and 50/50 by using an open system electrospinning unit. PCL is a flexible biopolymer with a long biodegradation time, whereas PLA is a strong polymer with high brittleness, higher biocompatibility, and a faster biodegradation time than PCL. The reason for utilizing these polymers together is to combine their mechanical and biological advantages and eliminate their inadequacies. The effect of the polymers and collector type on the fiber morphologies, diameters, and orientations, sample thickness, as well as the mechanical properties was assessed. It was observed from the results that all the samples were successfully produced, and they all have distinctive morphologies with smooth and continuous fibers. The tensile stress and elongation results revealed that polymer composition is highly effective on the tensile properties. Neat PCL samples had considerable elongation value with 390% whereas PLA showed good tensile strength with 2.73 MPa. When the blended samples were observed, it was seen that the blending affected the mechanical properties negatively based on the blending ratio that was used because of the immiscible characteristics of the polymers. The addition of PLA gradually improved the tensile properties, while using PCL in higher amounts caused better elongation values in blended samples, which shows the importance of the selection of a suitable blending ratio. According to the results of the planar samples, the PCLPLA90 and PCLPLA80 samples can be selected as they have moderate stress and strain values among the blended samples. Also, the use of tubular collectors enables the production of scaffolds with desired construction. On the second part, the monolayer tubular vascular prostheses were produced in a closed electrospinning system by using two rotational speeds to achieve scaffolds with randomly distributed or radially oriented fibers. In addition to the neat and blended samples made of PCL and PLA, two more polymers were added to the production stage, which are PLCL and PLGA. As PLCL is the copolymer of PCL and PLA and thought of as a better candidate to be used instead of physically blended scaffolds to eliminate the mechanical failure caused by blending, it was also used in the vascular graft fabrication process. On the other hand, PLGA has good biocompatibility and faster biocompatibility with good mechanical properties, which make it a good option to be used in vascular applications. When the physical and morphological results were investigated, it was seen that in a closed system, it is possible to produce vascular grafts with the desired thickness levels. Fiber orientation was also observed from SEM images in the radial direction within the tubular samples produced by using a high collector speed. The tensile test was performed on all the tubular samples in longitudinal and radial directions to see the effect of polymer composition, fiber orientation, and test direction on the tensile properties of the specimens. Results revealed that the neat PCL scaffolds showed more flexibility than the neat PLA samples, and the neat PLA samples show higher tensile strength than the neat PCL samples in general. Also in blended samples, tensile stress and elongation values were improved in some cases depending on the blending ratio, such as in PCLPLA90 and PCLPLA80 specimens. Also, neat PLCL samples had both higher elongation and strength values than all neat and blended scaffolds, with some exceptions. Generally, when the PLA ratio is increased, the tensile strength improves gradually, whereas the elongation values decrease. The maximum tensile strength belonged to PLCL100_O in the radial direction with 12.12 MPa, whereas it showed its highest elongation in the longitudinal test direction with 832%. In addition, PLGA100_R showed higher strength than the samples made of PCL and PLA, with very limited elongation. The strength values of PLGA samples were really promising, as it is a rigid polymer. On the other hand, radial fiber orientation greatly contributed to the tensile stress values in the radial direction and the elongation values in all directions compared to the samples with randomly oriented fibers. Higher stress values were obtained in the direction of the orientation whereas higher elongation values were achieved in the direction without fiber alignment. On the other hand, a custom-designed test device was specifically designed for vascular graft specimens to measure their burst strength and compliance. When the burst pressure values were assessed, the best results were obtained from the vascular grafts made of PLGA and then PCL/PLA blends with radial fiber orientations. The addition of PLA results in an increment in burst pressures up to a certain limit of PLA ratio. PLGA100_O showed the highest burst pressure at 2889 mmHg. According to the compliance measurements made using three different physiological blood pressure ranges, the scaffolds with higher flexibility possessed better compliance values. Thus, the samples with randomly distributed fibers had the highest compliance results when compared with the samples consisting of radially oriented fibers. PLCL100_R demonstrated the highest compliance with 4.924 mmHg %/100 mmHg at a 50–90 mmHg pressure range as the most flexible biopolymer among the others. Finally, considering the previously obtained biological analysis results, bilayer vascular grafts were fabricated by combining monolayer scaffolds with the best mechanical properties to obtain a prosthesis that could mimic the topography of the natural artery. The inner layer was constructed from randomly distributed fibers, whereas the radially oriented fibers were included in the outer layer. PCL100_R and PCLPLA80_R monolayers were selected as the inner layers while PLCL_O was used in the outer layers of the bilayered grafts due to their appropriate mechanical advantages. Results indicated that although the samples had a delamination problem in some cases, they had improved mechanical advantages in the tensile and bursting testing processes. On the other hand, the compliance results were still sufficient and comparable with the native blood vessels. All the results that have been achieved in this thesis shed light on the examination of the mechanical properties of vascular grafts and contain significant information for vascular prostheses to be produced in further research. The bilayered grafts that will be constructed in the future studies will be designed by considering the results of the mechanical assessments of the samples that have been optimized by using PCL, PLA, PLCL, and PLGA within the scope of this thesis and the biological examinations. In the following process, it is aimed to switch to in-vivo studies with the most appropriate bilayer scaffold designs to be obtained and to study the biological process in an interdisciplinary manner.