Mechanical Response of Human Muscle at Intermediate Strain Rates.

We experimentally determined the tensile stress-strain response of human muscle along fiber direction and compressive stress-strain response transverse to fiber direction at intermediate strain rates (100-102/s). A hydraulically driven material testing system with a dynamic testing mode was used to perform the tensile and compressive experiments on human muscle tissue. Experiments at quasi-static strain rates (below 100/s) were also conducted to investigate the strain-rate effects over a wider range.