Co‐Inspired Design of Poly(Vinyl Alcohol)/Green Functionalized Graphene Nanocomposite Scaffolds for Tissue Engineering

ABSTRACT Effective tissue regeneration is often hindered by inadequate oxygen and nutrient diffusion within porous scaffolds, which restricts cell survival in the scaffold core. To address this critical challenge, this study introduces a novel hierarchical scaffold design inspired by the layered architecture of nacre and the channel structures found in vascularized structures in plants, like lotus root and bamboo. The scaffolds are fabricated using an innovative combination of freeze casting and molds manufactured by 3D printing, composed of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) reinforced with tannic acid‐functionalized graphene. The nacre‐like microscale architecture was achieved via unidirectional freeze casting, while the lotus root‐ and bamboo‐inspired macrostructure was created using a 3D printed mold. The results showed that introducing bamboo‐ (single large channel) and lotus root‐inspired (multiple small channels) channels did not significantly compromise compressive properties. In particular, the lotus root‐inspired scaffold achieved a wicking velocity of 30.11 mm s ‐1 , approximately threefold higher than the non‐channeled and single‐channel designs, enabling faster and more uniform fluid penetration.