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Polymer and Organic Materials

Doctoral Dissertations

Theses/Dissertations

Bio-inspired

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Materials Science and Engineering

Deformation And Adhesion Of Soft Composite Systems For Bio-Inspired Adhesives And Wrinkled Surface Fabrication, Michael Imburgia Mar 2017

Deformation And Adhesion Of Soft Composite Systems For Bio-Inspired Adhesives And Wrinkled Surface Fabrication, Michael Imburgia

Doctoral Dissertations

The study of soft material deformation and adhesion has broad applicability to industries ranging from automobile tires to medical prosthetics and implants. When a mechanical load is imposed on a soft material system, a variety of issues can arise, including non-linear deformations at interfaces between soft and rigid components. The work presented in this dissertation embraces the occurrence of these non-linear deformations, leading to the design of functional systems that incorporate a soft elastomer layer with application to bio-inspired adhesives and wrinkled surface fabrication. Understanding the deformation of a soft elastomer layer and how the system loading and geometry influence …


Fabric And Soft Materials Composites For Bio-Inspired Adhesives And Prosthetics, Daniel R. King Aug 2015

Fabric And Soft Materials Composites For Bio-Inspired Adhesives And Prosthetics, Daniel R. King

Doctoral Dissertations

Adhesives have long been designed around a trade-off between adhesive strength and releasability. Within this spectrum, specialized materials have been designed to maximize adhesive ability for a given application. To overcome this trade-off, a new adhesive paradigm is required. Biologically inspired adhesives have been of interest over the past two decades, because organisms are seen using their adhesive pads to achieve high adhesive forces, while maintaining releasability and reusability. Many biological organisms possess microscopic fibrillar features on their toe-pads, which enables climbing. While much effort has been spent attempting to mimic these features, ultimately high force capacities have not been …