3.2.2. Mechanical Properties

The mechanical properties (force at break mN, a,b; elongation %, c,d; Young's Modulus mN cm2, e,f) of scaffolds loaded with HNT or MMT, in dry (a,c,e) or wet (b,d,f) conditions are presented in Figure 8.

In the dry state, the increase of HNT caused a decrease of force at break (Figure 8a) and of system elasticity (Figure 8c), while MMT reinforced the scaffold structure increasing the resistance to break (Figure 8a) and the system elasticity (Figure 8c) up to the 2% concentration; a further increase weakened the scaffold. The scaffolds were characterized by moderate deformability higher than that of the blank scaffolds (Figure 8b). The hydration caused a remarkable decrease in resistance to break, an increase of deformability, and a loss of elasticity (Figure 8d–f). Clay minerals seem to reinforce the scaffold structure; however, if their concentration exceeded a certain threshold, the presence of particles embedded into the polymeric matrix could disrupt the polymer chain entanglements, weakening the scaffolds.

**Figure 8.** Mechanical properties (force at break mN, **a**–**c**; elongation %, **b**–**e**; Young's Modulus mN/cm2, **c**–**f**) for dry (**a**–**c**) and wet (**d**–**f**) scaffolds loaded with HNT or MMT at different concentrations (mean values ± SD; n = 3). Statistics: \* = Mann–Whitney (Wilcoxon) W test *p* < 0.05.
