Investigation of the mechanical behavior of kangaroo humeral head cartilage tissue by a porohyperelastic model based on the strain-rate-dependent permeability

Solid-interstitial fluid interaction, which depends on tissue permeability, is significant to the strain-rate-dependent mechanical behavior of humeral head (shoulder) cartilage. Due to anatomical and biomechanical similarities to that of the human shoulder, kangaroos present a suitable animal model. Therefore, indentation experiments were conducted on kangaroo shoulder cartilage tissues from low (10(-4)/s) to moderately high (10(-2)/s) strain-rates. A porohyperelastic model was developed based on the experimental characterization; and a permeability function that takes into account the effect of strain-rate on permeability (strain-rate-dependent permeability) was introduced into the model to investigate the effect of rate-dependent fluid flow on tissue response. The prediction of the model with the strain-rate-dependent permeability was compared with those of the models using constant permeability and strain-dependent permeability. Compared to the model with constant permeability, the models with strain-dependent and strain-rate-dependent permeability were able to better capture the experimental variation at all strain-rates (p < 0.05). Significant differences were not identified between models with strain-dependent and strain-rate-dependent permeability at strain-rate of 5 × 10(-3)/s (p = 0.179). However, at strain-rate of 10(-2)/s, the model with strain-rate-dependent permeability was significantly better at capturing the experimental results (p < 0.005). The findings thus revealed the significance of rate-dependent fluid flow on tissue behavior at large strain-rates, which provides insights into the mechanical deformation mechanisms of cartilage tissues.