Monday, January 30, 2023
SCIENMAG: Latest Science and Health News
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME PAGE
  • BIOLOGY
  • CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS
  • MEDICINE
    • Cancer
    • Infectious Emerging Diseases
  • SPACE
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • CONTACT US
  • HOME PAGE
  • BIOLOGY
  • CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS
  • MEDICINE
    • Cancer
    • Infectious Emerging Diseases
  • SPACE
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Scienmag - Latest science news from science magazine
No Result
View All Result
Home SCIENCE NEWS Chemistry AND Physics

A foldable material that can change size, volume and shape

March 11, 2016
in Chemistry AND Physics
0
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
IMAGE

Imagine a house that could fit in a backpack or a wall that could become a window with the flick of a switch.

Harvard researchers have designed a new type of foldable material that is versatile, tunable and self actuated. It can change size, volume and shape; it can fold flat to withstand the weight of an elephant without breaking, and pop right back up to prepare for the next task.

The research was lead by Katia Bertoldi, the John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Natural Sciences at the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), James Weaver, Senior Research Scientist at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and Chuck Hoberman, of the Graduate School of Design. It is described in Nature Communications.

"We've designed a three-dimensional, thin-walled structure that can be used to make foldable and reprogrammable objects of arbitrary architecture, whose shape, volume and stiffness can be dramatically altered and continuously tuned and controlled," said Johannes T. B. Overvelde, graduate student in Bertoldi's lab and first author of the paper.

The structure is inspired by an origami technique called snapology, and is made from extruded cubes with 24 faces and 36 edges. Like origami, the cube can be folded along its edges to change shape. The team demonstrated, both theoretically and experimentally, that the cube can be deformed into many different shapes by folding certain edges, which act like hinges. The team embedded pneumatic actuators into the structure, which can be programmed to deform specific hinges, changing the cube's shape and size, and removing the need for external input.

The team connected 64 of these individual cells to create a 4x4x4 cube that can grow, and shrink, change its shape globally, change the orientation of its microstructure and fold completely flat. As the structure changes shape, it also changes stiffness — meaning one could make a material that's very pliable or very stiff using the same design. These actuated changes in material properties adds a fourth dimension to the material.

"We not only understand how the material deforms, but also have an actuation approach that harnesses this understanding," said Bertoldi. "We know exactly what we need to actuate in order to get the shape we want."

The material can be embedded with any kind of actuator, including thermal, dielectric or even water.

"The opportunities to move all of the control systems onboard combined with new actuation systems already being developed for similar origami-like structures really opens up the design space for these easily deployable transformable structures", said Weaver.

"This structural system has fascinating implications for dynamic architecture including portable shelters, adaptive building facades and retractable roofs," said Hoberman. "Whereas current approaches to these applications rely on standard mechanics, this technology offers unique advantages such as how it integrates surface and structure, its inherent simplicity of manufacture, and its ability to fold flat."

"This research demonstrates a new class of foldable materials that is also completely scalable," Overvelde said, " It works from the nanoscale to the meter-scale and could be used to make anything from surgical stents to portable pop-up domes for disaster relief."

###

This paper was coauthored by Twan A. de Jong, Yanina Shevchenko, Sergio A. Becerra and George Whitesides. The research was supported by the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center, the National Science Foundation and the Wyss institute through the Seed Grant Program.

Media Contact

Leah Burrows
[email protected]
617-496-1351
@hseas

http://www.seas.harvard.edu/

Share25Tweet16Share4ShareSendShare
  • Logo

    New study shows snacking on mixed tree nuts may impact cardiovascular risk factors and increase serotonin

    119 shares
    Share 48 Tweet 30
  • A fairy-like robot flies by the power of wind and light

    66 shares
    Share 26 Tweet 17
  • Is brain learning weaker than artificial Intelligence?

    66 shares
    Share 26 Tweet 17
  • Study finds women and men are equally effective at wage-labor negotiations

    66 shares
    Share 26 Tweet 17
  • Null results research now published by major behavioral medicine journal

    535 shares
    Share 214 Tweet 134
  • World-first guidelines created to help prevent heart complications in children during cancer treatment

    65 shares
    Share 26 Tweet 16
ADVERTISEMENT

About us

We bring you the latest science news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Latest NEWS

New study shows snacking on mixed tree nuts may impact cardiovascular risk factors and increase serotonin

Hydrogen peroxide from tea and coffee residue: New pathway to sustainability

Null results research now published by major behavioral medicine journal

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 205 other subscribers

© 2022 Scienmag- Science Magazine: Latest Science News.

No Result
View All Result
  • HOME PAGE
  • BIOLOGY
  • CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS
  • MEDICINE
    • Cancer
    • Infectious Emerging Diseases
  • SPACE
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • CONTACT US

© 2022 Scienmag- Science Magazine: Latest Science News.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In