Mechanical & Materials Engineering, Department of

 

First Advisor

Michael P. Sealy

Second Advisor

Laurent Delbrielh

Date of this Version

Summer 8-28-2022

Citation

Garrett, Alexis D. “SCALING CELLULAR AGRICULTURE PRODUCTION WITH PHOTOLITHOGRAPHY: A STUDY ON CURING AND DEGRADATION.” University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2022.

Comments

A THESIS Presented to the Faculty of The Graduate College at the University of Nebraska In Partial Fulfillment of Requirements For the Degree of Master of Science, Major: Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, Under the Supervision of Professor Michael P. Sealy. Lincoln, Nebraska: August, 2022

Copyright © 2022 Alexis Dawn Garrett

Abstract

To meet the requirements for full production in cellular agriculture, a multi-disciplinary approach is required. New questions and understandings between different concepts, such as texture and cooking, need to be identified and how they correlate with cellular behavior and taste. This work focuses on understanding and developing photolithographic systems for scalable cellular agriculture. There were two specific research directions: 1) a traditional photolithography printing system was improved upon for mass manufacturing purposes and 2) mechanical analysis and degradation of key potential photolithographic biomaterials were tested for a food product. A novel digital rotational ultraviolet manufacturing (DRUM) process was developed, and initial photolithographic printing tests were carried out. GelMA hydrogels were tested in uniaxial compression and compared to a range of meat samples at 20°C using constant displacement speed control. The results showed effective mimicry under the defined environment to that of raw scallops, but not of higher order constructs. A soy-based resin was also tested in degradation 37°C for 0 to 28 days in phosphate buffered solution and ethanol solutions. Degradation was successfully mapped via thermomechanical means in dynamic mechanical analysis. Stability of the material was verified upon addition of EBC-1 enzyme. Initial values for the mechanical behavior of pure soya scaffolds at 100% density were too stiff and unable to match desired findings in literature. The achieved results showed promise as a proof of concept for this methodology and emphasizes the importance of standardization of results, ultimately leading to the conclusion that the requirements for these products will likely require complex modular, multi-step, multi-material systems at scale.

Advisor: Michael P. Sealy

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