Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
work in 1997. In that work, she defined biomim-
icry as having three primary components [11] :
high-aspect-ratio fibers; the fibers are combined to
make yarns and threads, which are then compiled
into fabrics, which increase the dimensionality of
the hierarchy. Thus the materials we consider
include the polymers that comprise the fibers,
which are often synthetic, but there is a broad
palette of natural fibers from which to choose. In
fact, the available fiber materials have been bol-
stered by molecular biology, the extremely inter-
esting and fruitful study of recombinant DNA,
which has provided researchers with new tools
with which to study nature's fiber materials in
order to mimic them and to make new ones [13] .
In terms of higher-order constructions, plants and
animals have both provided insight into textile
structures. One thing we find is that there is still
much to learn about using nature's models of sus-
tainable manufacturing in our own manufactur-
ing of mimicked materials.
Nature as model. New solutions to human
problems.
Nature as measure. Ecology/evolution as the
standard of what works.
Nature as mentor. Learn from nature, not take
from nature.
The view Benyus presented is that of natural
systems as a source for inspiration, which is
predicated on an active study of what nature
presents and focused on what solutions nature
employs. Nature is a mentor, not a resource to
exploit; thus, we are directed to nature to assess
the viability of our solution. This is sustainability,
and the standard is high.
The evolution of biomimicry has spawned
several terms around which to form discussions.
One of the earlier terms for this field is bionics ,
and biomimetics was coined in the early 1950s.
Bionic became a much more popularized term,
thanks in part to the entertainment industry ( The
Bionic Woman television show, for example),
while biomimetics and biomimicry remained the
purview of the scientific community. Other terms
are also in use. The NRC report Inspired by Biology
provided the following definitions [12] :
10.3 BIOMIMESIS IN TEXTILE-
M ATERIALS ENGINEERING
10.3.1 Textile-Materials Engineering
One of the themes in this chapter has been rec-
ognizing that, in order to appreciate how the sci-
ence and engineering of textiles and fibers have
been informed by nature, it is helpful to have at
least a basic understanding of the field. This sec-
tion lays the foundation for later exposition of
some bio-inspired textiles by further developing
the reader's fiber and textile base.
Biomimicry. Learning the mechanistic
principle of a natural function and then
trying to achieve that function in a synthetic
material.
Bioinspiration. From observing a particular
task performed by a natural system, gain
inspiration for a synthetic system to effect
the same task.
Bioderivation. Hybrid between natural and
synthetic materials and functions.
10.3.1.1 Fiber
Fiber is a dietary necessity. Fibers are a clothing
necessity. It is this latter use of the term iber that
is relevant here. Interestingly, dietary fiber at the
microscopic level resembles a cellular structure
[14] reminiscent of plastic insulating foams, and,
of course, synthetic fibers are made from plastic.
Organic fibers, whether natural or synthetic,
are made up of linear-chain polymers, with the
most common natural fibers being cotton, wool,
As we explore how we may take inspiration
from nature to design fibrous material struc-
tures—textiles—that mimic natural systems in
process, form, and function, it is important to
keep in mind that fibrous structures are inherently
hierarchical: From the long-chain polymer comes
 
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