Compression of biocompatible liquid-filled HSA-alginate capsules: determination of the membrane mechanical properties.

Compression experiments between two parallel plates are performed on a series of biocompatible HSA-alginate capsules with two different membrane thicknesses. The capsule geometry and size as well as the average membrane thickness are first measured. The compression set-up is fitted with a sensitive force transducer that allows measurement of the compression force as a function of plate separation.