Presenter: Chloe Kincaid
Authors: Chloe Kincaid, Scott Thomson
Faculty Advisor: Scott Thomson
Institution: Brigham Young University
In the study of human-voice production, synthetic models of the vocal folds can provide useful information. These models are often crafted out of soft silicones through molding and 3D printing processes. However, due to the hydrophobic nature of silicones, these models are not compatible with exploring certain avenues of interest, such as interactions with air humidity or combining synthetic models with live human cell cultures. Therefore, creating human vocal fold models out of hydrophilic hydrogels could prove useful. The research to be described in this presentation details the feasibility of a hydrogel vocal fold model. The models are crafted with inexpensive and readily-available ingredients through a casting process. The models are multi-layer, with regions of stiffer material and a thread running through them to better simulate the tissue structure of actual vocal folds. The hydrogels are susceptible to dehydration and material creep, and therefore may be unreliable in repeated or long-term use. Therefore, responses of hydrogel vocal fold models to various vibration and tensile tests have been recorded. The vibration tests are performed by exciting a self-oscillating vibratory response of the model by means of pressurized air flow. The tensile tests are performed by capturing the stress-strain data of samples of the individual materials used to construct the model. The vibration tests include the acquisition and data analysis of the air flow rate and pressure, high-speed video, fundamental vibration frequency, and material stress-strain response. This data is compared to other vocal fold models and actual human vocal folds.