What if spiders made metamaterial webs using materials with mechanical size-effects?

Eric Robert Behling, Ashutosh Srivastava, Raphaël Glaesener, Siddhant Kumar, Aniruddh Vashisth

Research output: Chapter in Book/Conference proceedings/Edited volumeConference contributionScientificpeer-review

Abstract

Spider's webs are elegant examples of natural composites that can absorb out-of-plane impact energy to capture prey. Different spiders have different methods and structure of webs, and these variations in topologies have a significant effect on the prey catching abilities of the web. Taking inspiration from the spiders, metamaterials that have architectured topology can be fabricated according to end applications such as energy absorbers or impact tolerant materials. In this investigation, we theoretically examined impact loading on various orb-spider webs modeled with metamaterial architecture using materials that show size-dependent behavior. Using the size-dependent properties of nano-reinforced polymer-derived ceramics (PDCs), various metamaterial topologies were evaluated for out-of-plane impact due using ANSYS Ls-Dyna. The material properties capture the size dependency of the ceramics where smaller elements have higher strength due to reduced flaw intensity; the mechanical strength of these elements does not follow the conventional Griffith Theory. In this study, spider web geometries fabricated with PDCs with varying size elements were examined.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication36th Technical Conference of the American Society for Composites 2021
Subtitle of host publicationComposites Ingenuity Taking on Challenges in Environment-Energy-Economy, ASC 2021
EditorsOzden Ochoa
PublisherDestech publications
Pages91-100
Volume1
ISBN (Electronic)9781713837596
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021
Event36th Technical Conference of the American Society for Composites 2021: Composites Ingenuity Taking on Challenges in Environment-Energy-Economy, ASC 2021 - College Station, Virtual, United States
Duration: 20 Sept 202122 Sept 2021

Conference

Conference36th Technical Conference of the American Society for Composites 2021: Composites Ingenuity Taking on Challenges in Environment-Energy-Economy, ASC 2021
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityCollege Station, Virtual
Period20/09/2122/09/21

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