Resource type
Date created
2015-07-13
Authors/Contributors
Abstract
The gecko relies on van der Waals forces to cling onto surfaces with a variety of topography and composition. The hierarchical fibrillar structures on their climbing feet, ranging from mesoscale to nanoscale, are hypothesized to be key elements for the animal to conquer both smooth and rough surfaces. An epoxy-based artificial hierarchical fibrillar adhesive was prepared to study the influence of the hierarchical structures on the properties of a dry adhesive. The presented experiments highlight the advantages of a hierarchical structure despite a reduction of overall density and aspect ratio of nanofibrils. In contrast to an adhesive containing only nanometer-size fibrils, the hierarchical fibrillar adhesives exhibited a higher adhesion force and better compliancy when tested on an identical substrate.
Document
Published as
"Improved Adhesion and Compliancy of Hierarchical Fibrillar Adhesives," Li, Y.; Gates, B.D.; Menon, C., ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, 2015, 7 (30), 16410-16417. DOI: 10.1021/acsami.5b03576.
Copyright statement
Copyright is held by the author(s).
Scholarly level
Peer reviewed?
Yes
Language
English
Member of collection
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