The need for widespread urbanisation has increased due to population growth. Because of this, there is now a phenomenon called an Urban Heat Islands (UHIs), which form when there are greater air levels or surface temperatures in urban areas than in rural areas. The local climate, the urban fabric, the materials used, and the surfaces all contribute to UHIs. Architects (2014) found that with every 0.6 °C increase in midsummer temperature, peak hour power demand climbs 1.5 to 2% for Delhi. It has been projected that for every degree over a (locally specified) cut-off point, mortality rates for populations inside the European Union increase by 1 to 4%. However, in the middle of the hot buildings and humid streets, nature provides us with a multitude of clever cooling strategies that we might imitate. A creative approach to problem solving, bioinspiration, also called biomimicry, draws inspiration from nature to develop and innovate across a range of industries. It offers pleasing aesthetics in addition to useful solutions. A few of the bio-inspired techniques include using materials with high reflectance, i.e., those which are similar to the skin of Saharan ants; imitating the colour and reflectance variations of zebra skin for differential heating; and adding water features and vegetation that are modelled after human skin's evapotranspiration. Quite a few architectural components use these biomimetic concepts. Sun protection is actively provided by kinetic facades. Albedo is increased by the use of materials with high reflectivity. Differential heating caused by the incorporation of materials with varying degrees of reflectance creates convection currents. A localised cooling effect is achieved by the interspersion of green walls, water features, and porous materials that retain water. The goal of this study is to develop sustainable urban environments with lower UHI impacts using biomimetic concepts, such as green infrastructure and bio-inspired materials.

The abundant bioactive compounds and anti-inflammatory metabolites in pumpkins have prompted increasing research interest in utilizing cucurbit residues to derive in vitro anti-inflammatory agents. The present study investigates and compares the anti-inflammatory potential of Ag/Ag₂O nanoparticles (NPs) synthesized using pumpkin peels (PPs), seeds (PSs), and leaves (PLs). Ag/Ag₂O NPs were synthesized using the aqueous extracts of pumpkin byproducts under varying conditions, including different concentrations of AgNO₃, varying extract-to-ion solution ratios, differing irradiation methods (solar, microwave, UV, etc.), and varied incubation times. Biosynthesized Ag/Ag₂O NPs were characterized via UV–visible spectrophotometry, FTIR, SEM, TEM, and XRD analysis. Anti-inflammatory activity was assessed through egg albumin denaturation and human red blood cell membrane stabilization assays. The activity was compared to standard anti-inflammatory drugs ibuprofen and aspirin (100-1000 ppm). The biogenic Ag/Ag₂O NPs synthesized under optimum conditions exhibited characteristic surface plasmon resonance peaks ranging from 436 to 450 nm in UV-vis spectrophotometry, confirming NP formation. FTIR spectroscopy revealed the functional groups in the plant extracts involved in NP synthesis. SEM imaging showed the agglomerated spherical morphologies of the NPs. TEM analysis indicated particle sizes ranging from 7 to 10nm. XRD patterns confirmed the face-centered cubic crystalline structure of Ag/Ag₂O NPs. The PP-mediated Ag/Ag₂O NPs exhibited significantly higher (p<0.05) anti-inflammatory activity compared to ibuprofen in the egg albumin denaturation assay, with IC₅₀ values of 478 ppm and 598 ppm, respectively, while the PL-mediated Ag/Ag₂O NPs demonstrated significantly higher membrane stabilization activity compared to aspirin, with IC₅₀ values of 419 ppm and 452 μg/mL, respectively. In both assays, the anti-inflammatory activity of the plant extracts alone was very low compared to Ag/Ag₂O NPs. The biomimetic approach showed that biosynthesized Ag/Ag₂O NPs exhibited enhanced anti-inflammatory effects, demonstrating promise as novel anti-inflammatory agents with the potential sustainable production of nanotherapeutics.

Tendril-like structures curl around plant stalks and can be regarded as effective manipulators toward an object. The light structure has flexibility and resilience. In this project, the prehensile actuator is reinforced by fiber panels with inspiration from a tendril-like plant, and a convenient pneumatic soft gripper is fabricated for slender objects which are difficult to manipulate with normal grippers. The actuator is made of human-friendly silicone and utilizes compressed gas. The movement, stiffness, and load capacity should be improved in new designs. Therefore, inspiration is found from gelatinous fibers studied by botanists, and the cross-section structure of tendril-like plants provides a good example for soft actuators because fiber panels can be reinforced inside the actuators, with inspiration from tendril-like plant structures. In the new design, as shown in this research, a fiber-reinforced panel is inserted into the cross-section of the actuator. Meanwhile, it has little influence on the helix movement of the soft actuator. The mold is fabricated by a 3D printing method, and two-component silicone is used to make the physical model of the soft actuator. Variable materials of fibers are employed for the reinforcement panels, and experiments are carried out to obtain the important characteristics of the actuator, like movement ability and response time. With all this work, the actuator can be designed well and can form the basis for the further design of soft robots and potential manipulators. In this experiment, the actuator is tested as the gripper. Slender objects in ordinary life, like pencils, straws, and chopsticks, are manipulated by the prehensile actuating gripper, and the experimental results are analyzed and discussed.

In the past decade, researchers have analyzed the flight mechanism of flying organisms, carried out in-depth attitude control, position control design, and the system stability analysis of FMAVs, and proposed several state estimation models and control methods to realize the autonomous formation flight of flapping-wing flying robots. Among them, in the distributed information interaction network environment, which comprises multiple FMAVs, the internal system and communication process are inevitably influenced by factors such as network topology, sampling methods, and flight conditions. Consequently, this interaction may lead to information incompleteness phenomena, including time-varying delays, random packet losses, and signal attacks. These phenomena, in turn, degrade the estimation performance of the desired state during FMAV cruise accompaniment, standoff tracking, and encircling flight, ultimately affecting overall formation effectiveness. To address these issues, this study introduces a novel multi-FMAV time-varying formation control approach, considering the presence of multiple time delays in dynamic feedback control. By employing appropriate system transformations using free power matrices, combined with an augmented multiproduct Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional that captures more time delay information and an improved Wirtinger and relaxed integral inequality method, the resolution error is reduced. This approach leads to stability conclusions with reduced conservatism and design conditions for the distributed H∞ state estimator. These advancements expand the stable operation domain of the system and provide a more intuitive understanding of the formation's convergence ability. The validity of these conclusions is demonstrated through simulation examples, providing insights into the future research directions of FMAV flight control.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are a rapidly growing area of technology and materials science due to their unique properties such as adsorption, recyclability, polarity, and thermal and electrochemical stability. Pillar[5]arenes are a new class of molecular receptors that have proven to be effective drug delivery systems by forming "host-guest" complexes and agents for the selective recognition of biopolymers. The development of ILs based on a non-toxic biomimetic macrocyclic pillar[5]arene platform will lead to a new generation of materials with programmable properties. The purpose of this work is the synthesis of new ILs based on decasubstituted pillar[5]arenes with amino acid fragments (glycine, glycylglycine, L-alanine, and L-phenylalanine) and the study of their thermal stability and the effect of substituents and counterions, as well as the absorption of water-soluble pollutants. Melting point determination and simultaneous thermogravimetry (TG) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were used to study the thermodynamic properties of the ILs. UV spectroscopy was applied to study the interaction and absorption of contaminants by ILs.

Replacement of the bromide anion in the pillar[5]arene structure with NTf₂^– resulted in a more significant decrease in melting point (56–88 °C) compared to the PF₆^– anion (86–95 °C), which is logically related to the symmetry and density of the molecular packing. The onset of decomposition of the synthesized compounds was established at 240–300 °C. ILs with L-phenylalanine residues showed lower thermal stability and higher melting points compared to smaller fragments (glycine, alanine). The absorption of water-soluble contaminants by ionic liquids was shown to be possible, as expressed by a decrease in optical density.

The obtained results can be applied to the design of novel biomimetic supramolecular materials for substrate recognition and water treatment.

The work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (№ 23-73-01087), https://rscf.ru/en/project/23-73-01087/

Introduction

In 1968¹, a significant milestone in marine biomineralogy was achieved through the observation of crystalline lepidocrocite mineral phases (γ-FeOOH) forming on the proteinaceous spongin fibers of marine demosponges. This finding laid the foundation for exploring the field of biomimetics, raising intriguing questions about the potential of marine sponges as a sustainable source of unique spongin-based 3D scaffolds suitable for the in vitro biomineralization of iron ions on and within their microporous surfaces².

Methods

Our recent advancements have employed cutting-edge biomimetic techniques to synthesize lepidocrocite in vitro on a spongin scaffold ³. This research study explores the complex interaction between iron ions and the spongin scaffold in an artificial seawater environment, resulting in the development of a centimeter-large 3D iron–spongin composite. It is analyzed using analytical techniques including digital optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM/EDX), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), FTIR, X-ray diffraction, and confocal micro X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (CMXRF).

Results

Our research reveals a likely mechanism for lepidocrocite formation, seemingly linked to the amino acid functional groups in spongin. Building on this insight, we developed an iron–spongin composite characterized by its porosity, macroscopic 3D structure, and magnetic properties, as confirmed by comprehensive analyses using various techniques. Moving beyond merely providing foundational knowledge, our study pioneers the application of this 3D composite as a dopamine sensor. This represents not just a breakthrough in sensor technology but also exemplifies the effective translation of a biological process into a practical engineering application.

Conclusions

We successfully synthesized the 3D iron–spongin composite in vitro, leveraging the unique properties of spongin and its interaction with iron. This innovative material demonstrates significant potential as a novel dopamine sensor, highlighting its broader applicability in fields such as environmental remediation, biomedical engineering, and electrochemical devices, thereby exemplifying the seamless integration of biomimetic research with practical engineering solutions.

Introduction

The biological structures of different butterfly wings were examined in terms of the analysis of their surfaces. Insect wing structures are corrugated surfaces with different characteristics and represent completely different types of corrugations.

Methods

As part of this research study, image analysis of the mentioned surfaces was performed. The structures were first characterized by a scanning electron microscope (SEM), and then analyzed in the ImageJ program.

Results

Various characteristics were assessed, such as the repeatability of pattern within the surface of the structures, the filling of the surface, and the shape and behavior of the corrugation. Such tests are important for the design of biomimetic artificial materials for various applications. In this way, we can fully define the material and study its behavior, and then adapt it to the production needs. The results proved to be very significant for the adaptation of structure types in military applications.

Conclusion

The use of such designed materials with different corrugations is important for military applications because such materials show great sensitivity to the radiation of different wavelengths of light. The combination of materials science and military application is currently a promising technological field; therefore, this kind of research can further produce very important results.

This research presents a novel mechanical device, inspired by the pistol shrimp snapper claw, featuring a controlled, periodic opening/closing motion that generates oscillating flows at transitional Reynolds numbers. An innovative method for determining the corrosion rate of carbon steel samples under oscillating acidic streams (an aqueous solution of HCl) is proposed. Very thin carbon steel specimens (25 microns thick), coated with Zn on one side and insulated from the stream, enable the electrochemical sensing of the Zn surface upon perforation. With the use of this technology and a 532 nm laser coupled with an optical fiber and video camera arrangement, corrosion may be effectively detected, enabling precise pit counting and location determination. Furthermore, this study explores the impact of hydrodynamic cavitation on the corrosion of low-carbon steel samples by using the mechanical device to imitate the fast closing of pistol shrimp claws. Current-time curves reveal significant changes linked to local variations in dissolved oxygen concentration, cavitation-induced erosion, and alterations in the nature of surface corrosion products. The methods suggested here open the door to the creation of alternative corrosion sensors that have appealing qualities such as low cost, small size, and reasonable precision in detecting localized damage in both space and time.

Introduction

Low-Reynolds-number aerodynamics is important to a number of natural and man-made flyers. Currently, this is a topic under active study in the aerospace engineering community, motivated by interest in micro air vehicles (MAVs), and has been increasing rapidly. Our research suggests that it is more practical to employ bio-mimetic technology to utilize insect forms such as the dragonfly for specific functional parts of conventional robots only or to comprehensively refine existing engineering instead of directly imitating entire complex functions of living creatures.

Methods

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) will be utilised to investigate the aerodynamic forces over corrugated and tandem wings. Once the results are verified and validated, finite element analysis (FEA) will then be used to study the effects of structural loading on the wings. Topology optimisation algorithms will then be used to design lightweight and load-bearable structural elements. The next phase of the project will involve building and flight-testing (indoor/outdoor) various prototypes of flying robots with an emphasis on material selection and construction techniques.

Results

This is an ongoing research project that was recently initiated . We are currently working on the CFD part by conducting studies on Reynolds number (Re) effects and angle of attack (AoA) to gain a better understanding of the benefits of tandem and corrugated wings in terms of flight stability and drag reduction. We are aiming to include the results from the FEA and topology optimisation studies in the upcoming conference.

Conclusion

Our research suggests that the majority of the work carried out on the design and development of flying robots focuses on the direct imitation of entire functions of living creatures. In this paper, we presented a more practical approach by employing biomimetics to utilise the dragonfly wing form and comprehensively refine the design of fixed-wing flying robots.

Introduction. Modern medicine depends on biomaterials. Thus, it is imperative that these materials continue to be developed and improved.

Methods. This work aimed at designing hydroxyapatite-based coatings (HAp) with high osseointegration properties by developing a biomimetic morphology that resembles that of natural HAp found in bone tissue. The biomimetic HAp coatings with plate-like morphology were successfully obtained using the pulsed galvanostatic electrochemical approach on pure Ti discs. The coatings were investigated in terms of surface morphology, chemical and phasic composition, in vitro bioactivity, and cell interaction.

Results and Discussion. The morphological investigations revealed that using electrochemical deposition, HAp-based coatings with very thin and wide plate-like crystals can be obtained. The chemical composition highlighted that both Ca and P are present, and that the Ca/P ratio registered values of 1.66, being close to that of the stoichiometric HAp of 1.67. The phasic composition analysis showed that the main phase consisted of hydroxyapatite (ICDD #09-0432), with a crystallinity of ~ 25 %. The biomineralization ability of the cp-Ti substrate was improved by the HAp-based coatings, reaching a maximum value of 9.7 mg after 3 weeks of immersion in simulated body fluid (SBF) compared to the Ti samples which gained a mass of only 0.3 mg after the same period. The in vitro experiments using human mesenchymal stem cells demonstrated that the HAp-based coatings enhanced the extracellular matrix, the intracellular deposition of Ca, and cell viability when compared to the cp-Ti substrate, demonstrating the advantages of the developed coatings.

Conclusions. Therefore, the outcomes confirm that coatings with improved and adjustable properties can be designed for medical applications by using the electrochemical deposition technique.

Acknowledgement: This work was supported by the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research, CNCS - UEFISCDI, project number PN-III-P2-2.1-PED-2021-4275 (BioMimCells), within PNCDI III (project No. 621PED/2022).