NEW YORK (CNN) – Scientists developing new materials are studying an impossible source of power: a beetle that can withstand the onslaught of a car.
Researchers at Purdue University and the University of California, Irvine studied the aptly named diabolical ironclad beetle – Floods diabolix – to understand the secret behind its strength.
“If you take a beetle, and you want to hit it with your finger, you can probably kill it,” he told CNN.
But not the diabolical Ironclad Beetle. “This beetle is so hard that the will or strength you can do with your hands is not enough – it’s like a piece of rock,” said Pablo D. Explained by a professor of civil engineering and author of a study at Zavtterie, Purdue. CNN “Car tires aren’t enough to cause it to collapse.”
The The research was published in the journal Nature on Wednesday.
Experts wanted to understand why, in the hope of recreating such strength in building materials.
Using advanced microscopy, spectroscopy and in situ mechanical testing, the researchers identified the innermost part of the organism’s exoskeleton.
Scientists have discovered that the extreme rigidity of the diabolical ironclad beetle lies in its arsenal. The insect has two arms like the “electron” – used in the flying beetle to position the wings – which meet on a line called the suture, running the length of its belly.
Millions of years ago, a lot of beetles flew, Zavattiri said. “This particular beetle, as part of the development process, no longer flies,” he said.
Although the diabolical ironclad beetle does not use its elliptical to fly, the elliptical and twin squirrels instead help distribute the force applied evenly throughout the insect’s body.
Zavattiri explained that the CV acts like a jigsaw puzzle, attaching various exoskeletal blades to the organism inside the abdomen, which locks itself to prevent it from pulling out.
If the utility is not broken, another safety mechanism allows the blades to be slowly damaged. This energy prevents the sudden release of the will, which otherwise misses the beetle’s throat.
Using steel plates, the team of researchers found that the organism could use 39,000 times its body weight – 150 nitons – before its exoskeleton broke down.
Scientists say that if a car’s tire drives on a surface of insects, a force of about 100 nitons will be applied.
The team hopes to develop solid materials to better understand how the Beetles face such forces.
A serious problem in engineering is combining the materials of different compositions, for example, combining aluminum and steel into fields such as aerospace.
For example, when building aircraft turbines, metals are often added to the material mixed with mechanical fasteners, which can increase the weight, introduce stress, and eventually cause features and corrosion in the features. Are.
“We have the materials. The problem with engineering is how to connect them, “said Zavatteri.
“We can use these pieces – they’re showing you how the Beetle does it – to improve their toughness,” he said.
“It’s a good example of how nature uses this connection,” he said. “Every time we look at nature, we learn something new.”
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