| Abstract: | The dynamic elastic behavior of collagen fibers treated by LiBr solutions was studied by the method of free longitudinal vibrations. The frequency response functions and the stress–strain relationship were evaluated for fibers denatured to different extents by various concentrations of the salt solution. The James and Guth model for rubber elasticity was applied to the experimental data. The elastometric parameter β, which is a measure of the degree of folding of the macromolecular chains, was found to decrease on increasing the salt concentration. It might thus serve as a characteristic of the degree of denaturation of fibrillar proteins. |
