About this Research Topic
Nature has developed high‐performance materials and structures over millions of years of evolution and provides valuable sources of inspiration for the design of next‐generation structural materials, given the variety of excellent mechanical and electrical properties. Biomimicry, by learning from nature's concepts and design principles, is driving a paradigm shift in modern materials science and technology. However, the complicated structural architectures in nature far exceed the capability of traditional design and fabrication technologies, which hinders the progress of biomimetic study and its usage in engineering systems. Additive manufacturing (three‐dimensional (3D) printing) has created new opportunities for manipulating and mimicking the intrinsically multiscale, multimaterial, and multifunctional structures in nature.
Biological constructs comprise a significant source of inspiration for the design of next‐generation structural materials, given the variety of excellent mechanical, hydrodynamic, optical, and electrical properties to be found in especially evolved organic structures. Of particular interest are biomaterials and biostructures exhibiting unexpected properties that have fueled a recent escalation of interest in smart biological structures, based on the study of several notable examples. However, rather than simply duplicating natural materials and structures, a great challenge is to understand the design principles and physical/chemical mechanisms that determine optimized structural organization in biological systems and its relationship to function. In addition to material and structural research, another important consideration is determining the pathways for the synthesis and manufacturing of biomimetic materials and structures based on the identified physical/chemical principles.
The scope of this Research Topic will focus on the new 3D printing process, new structural design and new materials development to fabricate bioinspired structures. The types of manuscripts we are interested in are: research articles, reviews, and perspectives. The specific themes will focus on, but are not limited to, the following:
- 3D printing of bioinspired mechanical reinforced structures
- 3D printing of bioinspired structures with reinforced electrical properties
- bioinspired 4D printing.
Biological constructs comprise a significant source of inspiration for the design of next‐generation structural materials, given the variety of excellent mechanical, hydrodynamic, optical, and electrical properties to be found in especially evolved organic structures. Of particular interest are biomaterials and biostructures exhibiting unexpected properties that have fueled a recent escalation of interest in smart biological structures, based on the study of several notable examples. However, rather than simply duplicating natural materials and structures, a great challenge is to understand the design principles and physical/chemical mechanisms that determine optimized structural organization in biological systems and its relationship to function. In addition to material and structural research, another important consideration is determining the pathways for the synthesis and manufacturing of biomimetic materials and structures based on the identified physical/chemical principles.
The scope of this Research Topic will focus on the new 3D printing process, new structural design and new materials development to fabricate bioinspired structures. The types of manuscripts we are interested in are: research articles, reviews, and perspectives. The specific themes will focus on, but are not limited to, the following:
- 3D printing of bioinspired mechanical reinforced structures
- 3D printing of bioinspired structures with reinforced electrical properties
- bioinspired 4D printing.
Keywords: additive manufacturing, 3D printing, bioinspired design, functional structures, composites
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
