Reversal of Solvent Migration in Poroelastic Folds

Abstract

Polymer networks and biological tissues are often swollen by a solvent, such that their properties emerge from a coupling between swelling and elastic stress. This poroelastic coupling becomes particularly intricate in wetting, adhesion, and creasing, for which sharp folds appear that can even lead to phase separation. Here we resolve the singular nature of poroelastic surface folds and determine the solvent distribution in the vicinity of the fold-tip. Surprisingly, two opposite scenarios emerge depending on the angle of the fold. In obtuse folds such as creases, it is found that the solvent is completely expelled near the crease-tip, according to a nontrivial spatial distribution. For wetting ridges with acute fold angles, the solvent migration is reversed as compared to creasing, and the degree of swelling is maximal at the fold-tip. We discuss how our poroelastic fold-analysis offers an explanation for phase separation, fracture and contact angle hysteresis.