Analysis of the Mechanical Properties of Femurs and Eggshells of Two Selected Japanese Quail Lines Under Quasi-Static and Impact Loading Conditions

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INTRODUCTION
A bird’s skeleton provides structural support
and is a source of minerals for the eggshell for-
mation in female birds. It is specialized for ying
and walking on two legs. In many animals, corti-
cal and trabecular bone thickness decreases with
age. The bones of laying birds also change overall
strength throughout their lives. The mechanical
strength of bones depends on geometrical proper-
ties, the degree of mineralization, and the quality
of the material from which they are built. Due to
the participation of individual elements (cells, or-
ganic matrix, inorganic substances), their spatial
organization, and the functions performed, three
types of bone tissue have been distinguished in
birds: cortical, trabecular, and medullary bone -
occurring only in mature females [1–3]. A med-
ullary bone, as specialized easily created, and
resorbed woven bone, serves as a calcium reser-
voir in the process of eggshell formation. How-
ever, if a bird is calcium decient, it can also use
Analysis of the Mechanical Properties of Femurs and Eggshells
of Two Selected Japanese Quail Lines Under Quasi-Static
and Impact Loading Conditions
Anna Skic1*, Paweł Kołodziej1, Zbigniew Stropek1, Karolina Beer-Lech1,
Kamil Drabik2, Kamil Skic3, Ricardo Branco4
1 Department of Mechanical Engineering and Automation, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, ul. Głęboka 28,
20-612 Lublin, Poland
2 Institute of Biological Basis of Animal Production, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, ul. Akademicka 13, 20-
950 Lublin, Poland
3 Institute of Agrophysics, Polish Academy of Science, ul. Doświadczalna 4, 20-290 Lublin, Poland
4 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Centre for Mechanical Engineering, Materials and Processes
(CEMMPRE), University of Coimbra, R. Luis Reis dos Santos, 3030-788 Coimbra, Portugal
* Corresponding author’s e-mail: anna.skic@up.lublin.pl
ABSTRACT
This study presents the results of a dynamic two-point bending test and a quasi-static three-point bending
test of the quail femurs. Bones from females and males of two genetic strains of Japanese quail belonging
to various utility types were analyzed. Mechanical parameters obtained under impact and quasi-static
loading conditions were investigated. The mechanical strength of eggshells under both loading conditions
was also examined. The obtained results showed that the bones of males of both analyzed types of quails
were characterized by statistically signicant higher strength obtained under impact loading conditions
compared to the bones of females. Moreover, the mechanical strength of the eggshell measured under
impact loading conditions was characterized by higher values compared to the result obtained under
quasi-static load conditions. The observed dierences between quail genetic lines were not statistically
signicant. SEM–EDS qualitative elemental distribution analysis showed a higher content of calcium in
the female femurs. The damage present on the fracture surface indicates that these bones were more brittle.
Keywords: bone fracture, bone strength, eggshell strength, impact loading condition, quasi-static three-point
bending test.
Received: 2024.08.21
Accepted: 2024.09.25
Published: 2024.10.06
Advances in Science and Technology Research Journal, 18(7), 437–446
hps://doi.org/10.12913/22998624/193625
ISSN 2299-8624, License CC-BY 4.0
Advances in Science and Technology
Research Journal

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Advances in Science and Technology Research Journal 2024, 18(7), 437–446
cortical and trabecular bone as a source. During
lay, the content of the medullary bone increases
while the structural bone integrity decreases. The
loss of structural bone is not compensated by the
mechanically weaker medullary bone formation.
This skeletal weakening is considered to be a type
of osteoporosis [4–7].
Japanese quails (Coturnix japonica) are valu-
able birds for research because of their small size
and rapid growth rate. The Japanese quail under-
goes an aging process similar to that of mammals
with deterioration of reproductive functions, meta-
bolic and sensory systems [8]. The characteris-
tics of their bones may be determined by genetic,
physiological, nutritional, and physical factors [6,
9]. Bones, despite their great hardness, exhibit a
certain elasticity and mechanical plasticity and
also react with a change in structure to the continu-
ous or repeated action of deforming forces related
to loading and unloading. From a mechanical point
of view, bone tissue is a unique material, the char-
acteristics of which are determined by its structure
as well as the crystallinity of the bone mineral [10].
The eggshell strength is the most important
issue during the handling of packaged food.
Eggshell breaking may occur under quasi-static
loading conditions e.g. throughout the storage in
packaging trays. But the greatest part of the dam-
age is due to the forces acting under impact load-
ing conditions during oviposition, rolling out of
the cage, hitting other eggs in the grading pro-
cess, etc. [11, 12]. The eggshell rupture force may
depend on the poultry breed, diet, supplemen-
tation, egg shape, eggshell microstructure and
topography as well as loading velocity [11, 13,
14]. The most common technique used for egg-
shell strength determination is a compression test
between two plane plates but this method is lim-
ited to using the compression rate up to 5 mm·s-1
[11]. Nedomova et al. [15] used an impact test of
a freely fall bar from dierent heights to evalua-
tion of an eggshell’s mechanical characteristics.
They concluded that the dynamic rupture force
was higher than that obtained at the static loading.
Trnka et al. [11] used the Hopkinson split pressure
bar technique to analyze the dynamic strength of
goose eggs. This method allowed for achieving
loading rates up to about 17 mm·s-1. They found
that the rupture force obtained at the high strain
rate is independent of the eggshell curvature.
In the literature, the bone strength was ana-
lyzed using a classical three-point bending test
under quasi-static loading conditions [6, 16–18].
However, bone fractures most often occur when
a large force acts on the bone in a short period.
There is no data describing the quail bone behav-
ior under such mechanical loading conditions.
To date, the biomechanical properties of femurs
of selected quail lines have not been compared.
There is also no data on the dierences in me-
chanical properties of males and females of this
bird species. This study aimed to determine the
bone mechanical parameters of quail femurs
measured under quasi-static and impact loading
conditions. The eect of genetic line and sex on
the studied parameters was examined. This work
used a scanning electron microscopy technique
to provide information about bone structure and
chemical composition which have important con-
tributions to bone mechanical properties. Addi-
tionally, a new approach in the eggshell strength
determination was applied.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The research material was obtained from Jap-
anese (Coturnix coturnix japonica) quails, following
their intentional slaughter at the end of their repro-
ductive utility. Femurs of two genetic strains F11
(meat type) and S22 (lying type) were used in the
study. In accordance with the “Directive 2010/63/
EU of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 22 September 2010 on the protection of ani-
mals used for scientic purposes,” it is not permis-
sible to euthanize an animal solely for the purpose
of utilizing its organs or tissues for the specied
purposes in the directive”. Consequently, the ap-
proval of the ethics committee was not obtained.
The birds were maintained for a period of 24
weeks in reproductive ocks (1 ♂ × 4 ♀) under
conditions compliant with prevailing legisla-
tion, adhering to a lighting program (16L:8D),
and fed standard feed mixture adjusted to the age
and physiological state of the birds. At the age of
24 weeks, 36 eggs were collected from birds of
each breed. Right and left femurs were dissected
after the birds were sacriced. 10 right and left
bones from females and males of each breed were
collected. The bones were frozen and stored at
-20 ºC until strength tests were carried out. Bone
length and eggshell thickness were measured by
an electronic micrometer. Bone thickness was de-
termined after mechanical tests based on micro-
scopic measurements (Figure 1) (Nikon SMZ18,
Nikon Corporation, Tokyo, Japan).

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Advances in Science and Technology Research Journal 2024, 18(7), 437–446
Strength analysis under quasi-static loading
condition
Bone mechanical properties were determined
from the force-deformation curve recorded in a
three-point bending test using a TA.HD plus tex-
ture analyzer (Stable Micro System, Godalming,
UK). The average femurs length was 40.18 ± 1.00
mm, therefore the distance between supports (L)
was set at 16 mm (40% of the total bone length).
The measuring head speed was constant at 10
mm·min-1. The tests were performed at a sam-
pling frequency of 100 Hz.
Three-point bending test provided the deter-
mination of bone strength as a maximum force
recorded under quasi-static loading condition,
work-to-fracture, stiness, maximum stress
and modulus of elasticity. For the calculation it
was assumed that the bone cross-section was in
the shape of an ellipse [18]. Shell strength was
analyzed using an Instron Mini 55® (American
Instrument Exchange, Haverhill, MA, USA)
strength testing apparatus. The force required to
fracture the eggshell continuity was measured
with the head speed at 50 mm·min-1.
Impact test
In order to perform the bone impact test the
methodology described in [19] was applied.
Males and females femurs were isolated and sub-
jected to two-bending test under impact loading
condition. Bones were immobilized in the ep-
oxy glue-lled PVC tube as presented in Figure
2. The height of the sample measured from the
tube edge to the femur head was set to 17 mm.
The impact test was made at a constant speed of
V1 = 0.5 m·s-1, with the moment of inertia of the
pendulum arm I = 0.072 kg·m2. The impact force
(as a bone strength under impact loading condi-
tions) was measured by piezoelectric force sensor
Figure 1. Scheme of the experiment
Figure 2. Test stand for dynamic testing of quail femurs

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Advances in Science and Technology Research Journal 2024, 18(7), 437–446
Endevco model 2311–100 (Endevco Corporation,
Sunnyvale, CA, USA) of 2.25 mV·N-1 sensitivity
and measurement range ± 220 N.
In order to carry out the eggshell impact test,
a specially designed holder was used and mount-
ed to the previously described device. Therefore,
a shaped form, made of exible silicone com-
pound, which can be freely shaped in a plastic
form, has been used in these tests. Geometrical
parameters of the eggs were measured and their
average sizes determined before constructing the
test holder. These concerned the overall dimen-
sions, i.e. length of the egg and horizontal diam-
eters measured relative to two mutually perpen-
dicular axes (Fig. 3).
Taking into consideration the geomet-
ric parameters of the modeled surface, an egg
holder design was developed. The egg holder
was made of medium hardness exible silicone
rubber, POLASTOSIL M-33, and OL-1 cata-
lyst manufactured by “Silikony Polskie” Sp. z
o.o. Nowa Sarzyna (Poland). The density of the
mass provided an adequate strength base to sup-
port tested surface. The tested egg was placed
in prepared deformable form. The holder with
egg, comprising the testing set, were mounted
on the main board of the testing stand, as shown
in Figure 4. 18 eggs from each group (F11 and
S22) were taken for testing. Eggs were placed
in a previously prepared mold and the at plate
impactor hit the eggshell at a constant speed of
V2 = 0.25 m·s-1.
Microstructure analysis
Quail femurs after mechanical testing were
taken to fracture surface imaging and qualitative
elemental distribution analysis using the Phen-
om ProX scanning electron microscope (Ther-
mo Fisher Scientic Inc., Waltham, MA, USA).
The bones were imaged without pre-treatment
with the 10 kV accelerating voltage. The ele-
mental distribution analysis was made using
energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS system)
with a voltage of 15 kV. Maps of elemental con-
centration were taken from the area of 250×250
µm in triplicates. Based on obtained data Ca/P
ratios were calculated.
Figure 3. Construction of the quail egg test set (TS), a – geometrical parameters of egg: le – length of the egg,
d1 – horizontal diameter along the x axis, d2 – horizontal diameter along the y axis, b – the silicone holder with
egg – the test set (TS)
Figure 4. The position of the testing set (TS) in the measuring stand

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Statistical analysis
Statistical data analysis was performed in the
STATISTICA 13.1 (StatSoft, Inc., Tulsa, OK,
USA). The basic descriptive statistics (mean ±
standard deviation) of each parameter were cal-
culated. Two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA)
was used to compare bone and eggshell proper-
ties between quail groups. Dierences between
groups were determined with Tukey’s test. Two
factors were considered in analyses: quail breed
and sex. A p ≤ 0.05 value was considered as
signicant.
RESULTS
Table 1 summarizes the main characteristics
of quails, isolated femurs and eggs. Females had a
greater body weight than males and had a greater
average femur length. The isolated bones had a
similar thickness ranging from 0.32 ± 0.09 mm to
0.35 ± 0.06 mm. Quail eggs of the S22 line had a
greater mass and slightly greater shell thickness
compared to those of the F11 line. The observed
dierences in the mean values of these parame-
ters were not statistically signicant. The results
Table 1. Characteristics of analyzed quails, bones and eggs. Given mean values are presented with standard
deviations. Statistically significant differences between groups (Tukey´s tests) are indicated by a, b, c
Parameters F11 S22
Male Female Male Female
Body weight (g) 178.20 ± 8.02b203.25 ± 14.73a159.70 ± 11.08c194.83 ± 11.97a
Femur length (mm) 40.29 ± 0.87a41.10 ± 0.55a39.41 ± 0.17a39.91 ± 1.19a
Femur thickness (mm) 0.35 ± 0.06a0.32 ± 0.09a0.33 ± 0.12a0.33 ± 0.08a
Egg weight (g) 10.50 ± 0.29a10.94 ± 0.33a
Eggshell thickness (mm) 0.24 ± 0.02a0.25 ± 0.02a
Figure 5. Mean values with standard deviations of mechanical parameters obtained under quasi-static (blue
bar) and impact loading conditions (orange bar) for males and females lines F11 and S22. The same upper or
lower case letters indicate no significant differences between the means under quasi-static and impact loading
conditions, respectively

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of the mechanical tests are summarized in Figure
5, which shows the strength, work-to-fracture and
stress values obtained under quasi-static and impact
loading conditions for two quail breeds. The high-
est force values needed to bone break under qua-
si-static loading conditions were obtained for the
femurs of F11 males (Fig. 5a). Also for this group
work-to-fracture (Fig. 5b) and stress (Fig. 5c) were
characterized by highest mean values. Calculated
stiness and Young’s modulus had higher values
for the meat type than for the laying breed of quail.
Stiness was 156.08 ± 14.76 N·mm-1 for males and
162.27 ± 13.93 N·mm-1 for females of the F11 group
and 135.88 ± 14.72 N·mm-1 for males and 139.26
± 22.32 N·mm-1 for females of the S22 group. The
mean values of Young’s modulus in the F11 group
were 12.21 ± 3.48 GPa and 13.63 ± 4.56 GPa for
males and females respectively and for the S22 line,
the values were 8.13 ± 1.81 GPa and 11.28 ± 4.86
GPa in the male and female group. Under impact
loading conditions, mean values of all measured
mechanical parameters were signicantly higher
for males than for females (Fig. 5) in both quail ge-
netic lines. The highest values of work-to-fracture
and stress were obtained for the F11 males, while
the lowest mean values of all measured parameters
were observed for S22 females. Analysis of vari-
ance showed signicant dierences in measured
mechanical parameters under impact load condi-
tions between females and males femurs but dier-
ences between F11 and S22 genetic strains were not
statistically signicant.
The eggshell strength measured under impact
loading conditions had greater values (22.04 ±
2.30 N and 22.41 ± 1.76 N) than those measured
under quasi-static conditions (15.07 ± 2.93 N and
16.80 ± 3.35 N for F11 and S22 eggs, respec-
tively). Performed analysis of variance showed
no statistically signicant dierences in eggshell
strength between tested quail lines (Fig. 6).
Figure 7 presents microscopic photographs
of bone fracture at magnications 300× (Fig. 7a,
c, e, g) and 2000× (Fig. 7b, d, f, h). The fracture
surfaces of the male bones were smooth with a
straight crack path. In contrast, the fracture surface
of the female bones showed multiple cracks and
structural damage. These damages indicate that the
female bones were more brittle. In Figures 7c and
7g a medullary bone is visible as a porous, rich in
calcium structure. Elemental analysis showed a
signicantly higher calcium content in the female
femurs than in those of males (Table 2). Due to
similar phosphorus content, the Ca/P ratio was also
higher for females. The content of other elements
was at a similar level in all analyzed femurs.
DISCUSSION
Suzer et al. [9] studied the eect of dierent
feather colors on quail tibia mechanical properties
and showed that under quasi-static loading condi-
tions (head speed of 10 mm·min-1) there were no
statistically signicant dierences in strength and
Figure 6. Mean values of load at break with standard deviations for eggs of F11 and S22 quail lines under
quasi-static (blue bar) and impact (orange bar) loading conditions. The letters ‘A’ and ‘a’ means no statistically
significant differences in eggshell strength between tested quail lines under quasi-static and impact loading
conditions, respectively.

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Figure 7. SEM images of femurs fracture surfaces (a, b – F11 male; c, d – F11 female; e, f – S22 male;
g, h – S22 female)

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work-to-fracture between analyzed quail lines.
They noticed that among the analyzed lines, the
Pharaoh breed was characterized by the greatest
stiness. In our study, this quail breed also had the
greatest value of most analyzed mechanical pa-
rameters. F11 as a meat breed was characterized
by greater mass than S22 quails. F11 femurs were
also slightly longer. Obtained stiness values were
greater for females 162.27 ± 13.93 and 139.26 ±
22.32 N·mm-2 than for males 156.08 ± 14.76 and
135.88 ± 14.72 N·mm-2 for F11 and S22 lines re-
spectively. Stiness depends on bone geometry
and bone material properties [20]. Therefore F11
femurs, as longer, could be stier. According to
Kaczanowska-Taraszkiewicz [6] quail females
could have better mechanical properties than males
due to the medullary bone presence. In our study
birds were 24 weeks old, at the end of their repro-
ductive utility. Therefore probably due to osteopo-
rosis, the bones of females were weaker than those
of males as indicated by the results of the impact
test (Table 2). Our previous study [21] showed that
the impact test was more sensitive than quasi-static
three-point bending and allowed for dierentiation
of the examined rat bone groups. In this research,
we also observed that only under impact loading
conditions we were able to obtain signicantly
dierent values of all analyzed parameters for fe-
males and males within a given quail breed.
The main bone component is hydroxyapatite
Ca5(PO4)3(OH). The calcium to phosphorus ratio
(Ca/P) reects the mineralization degree and the
healthy bone status [22]. The Ca/P molar ratio is <
1.67 in the biological hydroxyapatite. The ratio de-
pends on sex, age, and bone type, and osteoporotic
bone has a smaller value than that of healthy bone
[23]. Literature reports indicate that osteoporotic
bones may also have a higher calcium and lower
phosphorus content than healthy bones [24]. In our
paper, a higher Ca content and simultaneously high-
er Ca/P ratio were observed for the female femurs.
It could be related to the process of medullary bone
formation during the laying period. For laying hens
medullary bone content increases with age while
structural bone integrity and fracture resistance de-
crease as impact tests demonstrated. The presence
of nitrogen in EDS results (Table 2) may come from
collagen brils whereas the oxygen content is related
to the presence of organic and inorganic compounds
[26, 27]. The obtained values of percentage content
are similar to those obtained by other authors using
SEM-EDS measurements [28–30].
Eggshell strength is one of the most important
egg quality parameters. It reects the mechanical
and physical properties of the egg and depends
on its thickness, mass, morphology, structure,
and chemical composition [25]. The eggshell is
made of calcium carbonate and contains proteins
interacting with the mineral phase controlling its
formation and structural organization, thus deter-
mining the mechanical properties [31]. A charac-
teristic trait of Japanese quail eggs is the spotted
pattern on the shell which is an individual feature
for each female [32, 33]. The eggshell color also
aects its quality characteristics. For example,
studies described by Drabik et al. [32] showed
that brown-shelled eggs were characterized by a
more resistant shell than blue ones. In this manu-
script, a new approach was used to determine
quail eggshell strength in which impact loading
conditions were applied. Analyzed eggs had simi-
lar traits and shell color. Values of forces needed
to break the eggshell continuity recorded under
impact loading conditions were higher than those
obtained in the quasi-static compression test. Our
results are in agreement with data obtained by
Trnka et al. [11] who studied goose eggs behavior
under dynamic loading conditions and found that
eggshell strength at high loading rates was higher
than that obtained under quasi-static loading.
CONCLUSIONS
The conducted research showed that quail
bone strength and eggshell strength depend on the
applied mechanical load. The following conclu-
sions can be drawn:
Table 2. SEM–EDS elemental analysis. Given mean values are expressed in percent by weight with standard
deviations. Statistically significant differences between groups (Tukey´s tests) are indicated by a, b, c
Parameters O % Ca % P % N % Na % Mg % K % Ca/P
F11
Male 57.61 ± 7.25a19.77 ± 4.53a,b 13.22 ± 2.76a7.67 ± 1.90a0.94 ± 0.19a0.45 ± 0.1 2a0.34 ± 0.02a1.50 ± 0.20a
Female 42.67 ± 1.04a30.73 ± 2.58b12.46 ± 0.60a12.52 ± 0.68a0.75 ± 0.16a0.43 ± 0.15a0.46 ± 0.06a2.47 ± 0.33b
S22
Male 64.22 ± 7.91a13.60 ± 2.88a10.23 ± 3.10a10.07 ± 2.81a1.02 ± 0.49a0.36 ± 0.13a0.54 ± 0.12a1.33 ± 0.13a
Female 52.87 ± 3.41a24.67 ± 1.67a,b 13.03 ± 1.74a7.76 ± 0.04a0.87 ± 0.03a0.61 ± 0.11a0.19 ± 0.02a1.89 ± 0.13a,b

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1. The impact test, being more sensitive, can
dierentiate bones based on their mechanical
properties Under quasi-static loading condi-
tions, no signicant dierences were observed
in the strength, stress, work-to-fracture, and
modulus of elasticity between male and female
femurs. However, signicant dierences in the
values of the analyzed mechanical parameters
(strength, stress, work-to-fracture) were ob-
tained under impact loading conditions.
2. The eggshell strength measured under impact
loading conditions had greater values than
those under quasi-static conditions. Performed
analysis of variance showed no signicant dif-
ferences between analyzed quail lines mea-
sured under both mechanical load conditions.
3. SEM-EDS qualitative elemental distribution
analysis showed a higher calcium content in
the female femurs. The damage visible on the
fracture surface indicates that these bones were
more brittle.
Acknowledgments
The Authors would like to thank Professor
Grzegorz Zięba from the Institute of Biological
Basis of Animal Production for providing the ma-
terial for research. The manuscript was created in
cooperation with the Department of Mechanical
Engineering of the University of Coimbra, during
the scientic internship from October 23, 2023 to
November 3, 2023 Coimbra, Portugal.
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