Cuticle provides protection: arthropods

1 of 1 Grapsus grapsus / Lieutenant E.. / License

The cuticle of arthropods provides rigid protection via its composite structure.

Biomimicry Taxonomy

	Maintain physical integrity >
	Manage structural forces >
	Compression

Biomimetic Application Ideas

Strong lightweight building materials that are tolerant to thermal stress, replacement material for plastics, lightweight cars and trucks for transporting goods and people.

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[Collapse all sections] Summary

"What we're calling rigid materials includes a lot of familiar biological items. There's arthropod cuticle, a composite of chitin fibers in some proteinaceous material, with the addition of calcium carbonate salt in the larger crustaceans. In many instances, the fibers are arranged in sheets, each with a specific orientation, rather like plywood." (Vogel 2003:305)

About the inspiring organism

Arthropoda
Arthropoda

Organism/taxonomy data provided by:
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2008 Annual Checklist

Bioinspired products and application ideas

Application Ideas: Strong lightweight building materials that are tolerant to thermal stress, replacement material for plastics, lightweight cars and trucks for transporting goods and people.

Industrial Sector(s) interested in this strategy: Building, materials science, transportation

Shrilk composite film - Composite film

References

Steven Vogel. 2003. Comparative Biomechanics: Life's Physical World. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 580 p.

Cuticle provides protection: arthropods

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