A research project conducted by a team from Xi'an Jiaotong University (XJTU) led by Xu Feng made the list of the top 10 national technological innovations featuring the integration of medical research with industrial application. It is the only project from Northwest China's Shaanxi province to receive the honor.

The result was announced at the University Alliance of the Silk Road’s recent forum on medical development and the 14th Annual Academic Conference on Medical Technology Innovation organized by XJTU, which is based in Xi'an, the provincial capital.

The project focuses on the hydrogel-assisted microfluidic spinning of stretchable fibers via fluidic and interfacial self-adaptations. It has led to the successful production of various stretchable fibers, which is expected to significantly advance the development and application of novel stretchable fibers. The research findings have been published online in the international academic journal Science Advances.

Through interdisciplinary collaboration in materials science, biomedical engineering, fluid mechanics and mechanical manufacturing, the research team developed a hydrogel-assisted microfluidic spinning method capable of mass-producing stretchable fibers with excellent morphology. It is universally applicable to a wide range of nonwoven polymers.

The study revealed the fluid mechanics of fiber preparation and validated the application potential of stretchable functional fibers with different compositions and structures.

The Bio-Inspired Engineering and Biomechanics Research Institute (BEBC) at XJTU has conducted a series of "mechanomedicine" studies based on biomechanics and mechanobiology. Specific research findings have been published in renowned journals such as Nature Materials, Nature Biomedical Engineering and Science Advances.