School of Mechanical Engineering Dr. Bat-El Pinchasik

School of Mechanical Engineering Seminar
Wednesday, June 7, 2017 at 14:00
Wolfson Building of Mechanical Engineering, Room 206

A Lesson from Nature:

Underwater Reversible Adhesion using Air Capillary Bridges

Dr. Bat-El Pinchasik

Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research Mainz, Germany

Animals in nature, specifically insects, make extensive use of hydrophobic interactions for a wide variety of tasks: from gliding on the water surface through directional diving and even remaining dry underwater. Especially surprising is the ability of the leaf and ladybird beetles to walk underwater. That is, to adhere to submerged solid surfaces. By entrapping air in a hair-like hydrophobic structure they form air capillary bridges which are used to reversibly adhere and perform locomotion underwater. In order to develop a physical model to describe this mechanism, the different contributing parameters should be first identified and characterized: from structural design of the beetle’s adhesive pad to the physio-chemical properties of its cuticle. Based on numerical simulations it is possible to establish guiding principles for the design of synthetic structures for strong underwater reversible adhesion. These findings are not only important for understanding hydrophobic forces in nature but also for developing bio-inspired materials and systems for propulsion, actuation and locomotion on the micro scale. These principles can be applied for the reduction of friction in underwater transportation, control of the floatation and diving of aquatic vehicles and reduction of underwater noise.