(502a) Bioinspired Materials with Ordered Architecture and Multifunctionality

Development of human society is, to some extent, relying on the invention of new materials. In this context, biological materials, such as bone, shell and bamboo, constantly serve as a source of inspiration to design strong, tough, lightweight, self-healing and smart synthetic materials for future engineering applications. While biological materials achieve multifunctionality by building sophisticated multiscale architecture, synthetic materials are always relying on the diversity of constituents. Combining these two strategies would stimulate green fabrication approaches and result in multifunctional materials with unprecedented properties. Specifically, we take an ice-templating technique to mimic the sophisticated architecture of biological materials in our synthetic counterparts. In this talk, I will show the potential of this biomimetic approach, with our recent progress in thermoregulating textiles inspired by polar bear hair, intrinsically self-healable nacre-mimetic composites and smart sponges for fast liquid absorption and remote recycling.