CAREER: Biologically Inspired Artificial Skins with Continuous Carbon Nanotube Composites

该学院早期职业发展(CAEREAR)项目的研究目标是研究连续碳纳米管聚合物复合材料在压缩下的粘弹性，并探索其作为生物灵感人造皮肤的潜在用途。PI最近观察到的这种连续复合材料的软组织相似行为表明，使用工程纳米管结构来构建生物模拟系统(如人造皮肤)的潜力很大。由于目前还不能很好地理解纳米管复合材料的特性，因此有必要对连续纳米管复合材料的粘弹性特性和各向异性特性进行基础科学的研究。这些知识将使我们能够利用定向纳米管生长方法进一步研究和制造从根本上新型的纳米管分层结构，从而建立新的解决方案，最终创造出仿生人造皮肤。它们将提供轻便、灵活、机械坚固和出色的可逆性能，包括可以减少摩擦阻力和提高能效的出色减震。如果这项研究成功，这项研究将创造出具有实际意义的仿生人造皮肤，用于广泛的工业应用，如更省油的飞机或对环境无害的可再生风能系统。它将满足快速增长的国家需求，即通过提高能源效率来保护我们的能源资源。这项研究将为新兴工程师提供了解和学习新兴技术、环境考虑因素以及将科学发现与现实应用和社会发展联系起来的需要的机会。将与当地高中合作开发和提供高中水平的工程入门课程。本科生和研究生都将从课堂教学和参与研究中受益。以人造皮肤为特色的风力涡轮机叶片设计将作为高效发电的设计项目包括在机械工程高级课程中。

The research objective of this Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) project is to investigate viscoelasticity of continuous carbon nanotube polymer composites under compression and explore their potential utility as biologically inspired artificial skins. The soft-tissue like behavior of such continuous composites recently observed by the PI shows strong potential of using engineered nanotube architectures for building biologically analogous systems such as artificial skins. Since the underlying mechanism of the intriguing properties in the composites is not understood, it is essential to study the fundamental science of the viscoelastic characteristics of the continuous nanotube composites as well as their anisotropic properties. This knowledge will enable us to further investigate and fabricate fundamentally new nanotube hierarchical structures with an aligned nanotube growth method so as to establish novel solutions to ultimately create bio-mimicking artificial skins. They will offer lightweight, flexibility, mechanical robustness, and outstanding reversible properties including excellent damping that can reduce friction drag and result in energy efficiency. If successful, this research will create the bio-inspired artificial skins of practical significance for a broad range of industrial applications such as aircraft that is far more fuel efficient or renewable wind energy system that is environmentally benign. It will meet the rapidly growing national need that is to preserve our energy resource by increasing energy efficiency. The research will provide the emerging engineers opportunity to understand and learn emerging technologies, environmental considerations, and the need to relate scientific discovery to realistic applications and societal development. A high school level introduction to engineering course will be developed and offered in collaboration with the local high school. Both undergraduate and graduate students will benefit through classroom instruction and involvement in research. The wind turbine blade design featuring the artificial skins will be included in a mechanical engineering senior capstone course as a design project for efficient power generation.