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Wu N, Lin Q, Shao F, Chen L, Zhang H, Chen K, Wu J, Wang G, Wang H, Yang Q. Insect cuticle-inspired design of sustainably sourced composite bioplastics with enhanced strength, toughness and stretch-strengthening behavior. Carbohydr Polym 2024; 333:121970. [PMID: 38494224 DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2024.121970] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2023] [Revised: 02/02/2024] [Accepted: 02/17/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
Insect cuticles that are mainly made of chitin, chitosan and proteins provide insects with rigid, stretchable and robust skins to defend harsh external environment. The insect cuticle therefore provides inspiration for engineering biomaterials with outstanding mechanical properties but also sustainability and biocompatibility. We herein propose a design of high-performance and sustainable bioplastics via introducing CPAP3-A1, a major structural protein in insect cuticles, to specifically bind to chitosan. Simply mixing 10w/w% bioengineered CPAP3-A1 protein with chitosan enables the formation of plastics-like, sustainably sourced chitosan/CPAP3-A1 composites with significantly enhanced strength (∼90 MPa) and toughness (∼20 MJ m -3), outperforming previous chitosan-based composites and most synthetic petroleum-based plastics. Remarkably, these bioplastics exhibit a stretch-strengthening behavior similar to the training living muscles. Mechanistic investigation reveals that the introduction of CPAP3-A1 induce chitosan chains to assemble into a more coarsened fibrous network with increased crystallinity and reinforcement effect, but also enable energy dissipation via reversible chitosan-protein interactions. Further uniaxial stretch facilitates network re-orientation and increases chitosan crystallinity and mechanical anisotropy, thereby resulting in stretch-strengthening behavior. In general, this study provides an insect-cuticle inspired design of high-performance bioplastics that may serve as sustainable and bio-friendly materials for a wide range of engineering and biomedical application potentials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nan Wu
- School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, Liaoning 116024, China
| | - Qiaoxia Lin
- School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, Liaoning 116024, China
| | - Fei Shao
- School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, Liaoning 116024, China
| | - Lei Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China; Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen 518120, China
| | - Haoyue Zhang
- School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, Liaoning 116024, China
| | - Kaiwen Chen
- School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, Liaoning 116024, China
| | - Jinrong Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials Engineering, College of Polymer Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Guirong Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China; Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen 518120, China
| | - Huanan Wang
- School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, Liaoning 116024, China.
| | - Qing Yang
- School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, Liaoning 116024, China; State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China; Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen 518120, China.
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Tuo Z, Yang K, Ma S, Cui J, Shi Y, Zhao H, Liang Y, Liu C, Lin Z, Han Z, Ren L. Multi-Level Structural Enhancement Mechanism of the Excellent Mechanical Properties of Dung Beetle Leg Joint. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2024:e2311588. [PMID: 38497502 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202311588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Revised: 02/17/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
The multi-level structure is a strategy to enhance the mechanical properties of dung beetle leg joints. Under external loads, the microstructure facilitates energy dissipation and prevents crack extension. The macrostructure aids in transferring the load to more reliable parts. The connection established by the two hemispheres is present in the dung beetle leg joint. The micron-layered and nanoscale crystal structures further constitute the leg joint with excellent mechanical properties. The maximum compression fracture force is ≈101000 times the weight of the leg. Here, the structural design within the dung beetle leg joints and reveal the resulting mechanical response and enhancement mechanisms is determined. A series of beetle leg joints where the macrostructure and microstructure of the dung beetle leg provide mechanical strength at critical strains while avoiding catastrophic failure by transferring the load from the joint to the exoskeleton of the femur is highlighted. Nanocrystalline structures and fiber layers contribute to crack propagation of the exoskeleton. Based on this, the bionic joint with multi-level structures using resin and conducted a series of tests to verify their effectiveness is prepared. This study provides a new idea for designing and optimizing high-load joints in engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiwei Tuo
- The Key Laboratory of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
| | - Kaisheng Yang
- School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Jilin University, Changchun, 130025, China
| | - Suqian Ma
- The Key Laboratory of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
| | - Jiandong Cui
- The Key Laboratory of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
| | - Yu Shi
- School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Jilin University, Changchun, 130025, China
| | - Hongwei Zhao
- School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Jilin University, Changchun, 130025, China
| | - Yunhong Liang
- The Key Laboratory of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
- Institute of Structured and Architected Materials, Liaoning Academy of Materials, Shenyang, 110167, China
- National Key Laboratory of Automotive Chassis Integration and Bionics, Changchun, 130025, China
| | - Changyi Liu
- The Key Laboratory of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
| | - Zhaohua Lin
- School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Jilin University, Changchun, 130025, China
| | - Zhiwu Han
- The Key Laboratory of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
- Institute of Structured and Architected Materials, Liaoning Academy of Materials, Shenyang, 110167, China
| | - Luquan Ren
- The Key Laboratory of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
- Institute of Structured and Architected Materials, Liaoning Academy of Materials, Shenyang, 110167, China
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Zhou J, Ng BF, Han N, Chen L, Wang Z, Li X, Zou M. Structure and mechanical properties of ladybird elytra as biological sandwich panels. J Mech Behav Biomed Mater 2023; 143:105917. [PMID: 37216753 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2023.105917] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2023] [Revised: 05/13/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
The armour of the ladybird, elytra, protect the body from injury and are well-adapted to flight. However, experimental methods to decipher their mechanical performances had been challenging due to the small size, making it unclear how the elytra balance mass and strength. Here, we provide insights to the relationship between the microstructure and multifunctional properties of the elytra by means of structural characterization, mechanical analysis and finite element simulations. Micromorphology analysis on the elytron revealed the thickness ratio of the upper lamination, middle layer and lower lamination is approximately 51:139:7. The upper lamination had multiple cross fibre layers and the thickness of each fibre layer is not the same. In addition, the tensile strength, elastic modulus, fracture strain, bending stiffness and hardness of elytra were obtained through in-situ tensile and nanoindentation-bending under the influence of multiple loading conditions, which also serve as references for finite element models. The finite element model revealed that structural factors such as thickness of each layer, angle of fibre layer and trabeculae are key to affecting the mechanical properties, but the effect is different. When the thickness of upper, middle and lower layers is the same, the tensile strength provided by unit mass of the model is 52.78% lower than that provided by elytra. These findings broaden the relationship between the structural and mechanical properties of the ladybird elytra, and are expected to inspire the development of sandwich structures in biomedical engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianfei Zhou
- Key Lab of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China; School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue 639798, Singapore
| | - Bing Feng Ng
- School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue 639798, Singapore
| | - Na Han
- Key Lab of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
| | - Lining Chen
- Key Lab of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
| | - Zhaoyang Wang
- Key Lab of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
| | - Xiujuan Li
- Key Lab of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China
| | - Meng Zou
- Key Lab of Bionic Engineering, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, China.
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Zhao L, Cui Y, Li J, Xie Y, Li W, Zhang J. The 3D Controllable Fabrication of Nanomaterials with FIB-SEM Synchronization Technology. NANOMATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 13:1839. [PMID: 37368269 DOI: 10.3390/nano13121839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2023] [Revised: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
Nanomaterials with unique structures and functions have been widely used in the fields of microelectronics, biology, medicine, and aerospace, etc. With advantages of high resolution and multi functions (e.g., milling, deposition, and implantation), focused ion beam (FIB) technology has been widely developed due to urgent demands for the 3D fabrication of nanomaterials in recent years. In this paper, FIB technology is illustrated in detail, including ion optical systems, operating modes, and combining equipment with other systems. Together with the in situ and real-time monitoring of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging, a FIB-SEM synchronization system achieved 3D controllable fabrication from conductive to semiconductive and insulative nanomaterials. The controllable FIB-SEM processing of conductive nanomaterials with a high precision is studied, especially for the FIB-induced deposition (FIBID) 3D nano-patterning and nano-origami. As for semiconductive nanomaterials, the realization of high resolution and controllability is focused on nano-origami and 3D milling with a high aspect ratio. The parameters of FIB-SEM and its working modes are analyzed and optimized to achieve the high aspect ratio fabrication and 3D reconstruction of insulative nanomaterials. Furthermore, the current challenges and future outlooks are prospected for the 3D controllable processing of flexible insulative materials with high resolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lirong Zhao
- School of Physics, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Yimin Cui
- School of Physics, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Junyi Li
- School of Physics, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Yuxi Xie
- School of Physics, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Wenping Li
- School of Physics, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Junying Zhang
- School of Physics, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China
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Fracture toughness of the stomatopod dactyl club is enhanced by plastic dissipation: A fracture micromechanics study. Acta Biomater 2021; 126:339-349. [PMID: 33727196 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2021.03.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Revised: 03/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The dactyl club of stomatopods is a biological hammer used to strike on hard-shell preys. To serve its function, the club must be imparted with a high tolerance against both contact stresses and fracture. While the contact mechanics of the club has been established, fracture toughness characterization has so far remained more elusive and semi-quantitative using nanoindentation fracture methods. Here, we used microcantilever fracture specimens with a chevron-notched crack geometry to quantitatively evaluate the fracture response of the impact region of dactyl clubs. The chevron-notched geometry was selected as it minimizes surface-related artefacts due to ion milling, and further allows to carry out fracture tests on samples free of pre-cracks with stable crack propagation even for brittle materials. Both linear elastic as well as elastic-plastic fracture mechanics methods, together with finite element modelling, were employed to analyse the fracture data. We find that crack-tip plastic dissipation is the main mechanism contributing to the fracture properties of the dactyl club material. Our study also suggests that the chevron-notched crack geometry is a suitable method to quantitatively assess the fracture toughness of hard biological materials. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Characterizing the fracture resistance of biomineralized structures is essential to draw their structure-properties relationships. Yet measuring the fracture properties of such materials is often hampered by their small size and irregular shape. Indentation fracture is used to circumvent these issues but does not discriminate between the elastic and elastic-plastic contributions to the fracture resistance. The dactyl club "hammer" of mantis shrimps is a biological material whose fracture properties are central to its function. A microfracture study was conducted using microcantilever specimens with chevron-notched crack geometry to assess the fracture toughness. Adopting linear elastic and elastic-plastic fracture mechanics protocols, we find that plastic dissipation is the major contribution to the fracture response of the hypermineralized impact region of the dactyl club.
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Xing Y, Yang J. Stiffness distribution in natural insect cuticle reveals an impact resistance strategy. J Biomech 2020; 109:109952. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2020.109952] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2020] [Revised: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 07/08/2020] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
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Multiscale designs of the chitinous nanocomposite of beetle horn towards an enhanced biomechanical functionality. J Mech Behav Biomed Mater 2019; 91:278-286. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2018.12.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2018] [Revised: 11/04/2018] [Accepted: 12/21/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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