Member of the team

Leopold Bergk, Otto-von-Guericke-Universität, Magdeburg, Master-Thesis

The real cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis L.) are characterised by their back bone, which is called the shoulderp. This consists of thin layers connected with upright walls, making the structure of the bone hollow, porous and light. The structure of the Schulp serves as a skeletal structure, but also as a gas tank, which allows static buoyancy to be generated in the hollow structure and allows the octopus to easily maintain its position in the water. In order to withstand the static pressure differences at great ocean depths, the structure is considered to be particularly resistant to loads and the design allows for high energy absorption.

Due to the excellent properties, the structure of the Schulp is used and investigated as a model for possible energy absorption applications within the context of the master's thesis. For this purpose, the structure is abstracted and numerically simulated by accident-like loads.

Timo Wottke, Dresden University of Technology, Project Work

Diatoms are exposed to variable forces from different directions due to attacks of natural predators. Through evolution, they have developed complex shell structures that are extremely robust to changes in load, but at the same time have the lowest possible weight. A similar problem exists in technical applications.

For example, components that have undergone topology optimization to save mass quickly fail when an unforeseen moderate load (e.g., due to improper use) occurs.
The content of my work is to investigate to what extent the robustness of lightweight structures can be increased by applying biologically inspired design principles.

Ranganayagi Venkatmohan, University of Duisburg-Essen, Master Thesis

The endeavor to adapt a design in such a manner that the ratio of useful weight to dead weight increases without having a detrimental influence on functioning is known as lightweight construction. Everywhere you look in nature, lattice-like cell structures offer strength and flexibility to much more lightweight materials. Consider honeycombs, bones or marine sponges as examples. Similarly, design engineers may use lattices to improve the performance of their models.
My Main goal during this Mater Thesis is to investigate if the irregular lattice structures exhibits better damping potential than the regular lattice structures. Therefore, regular and irregular lattice structures will be designed using ELISE software which offers systematic techniques and optimization approaches to produce high performance lightweight solutions. Using additive manufacturing, the optimized lattice structures will be developed into a prototype, which will be analysed experimentally on a shaker table in the following step. Finally, the natural frequency and the damping properties will be evaluated numerically and through FEM software Hyperworks (Optistruct) to ensure that the experimental and the simulation results are consistent to achieve the main goal of this thesis.

Landry Nennig, Ecole Nationale d‘Ingenieurs de Metz France, Master thesis

Looking closely at diatoms brings up a large range of ideas and perspectives to improve our existing products and structures. One can notice that the repartition of the matter is done in such a way that no place is given for extra weight. Besides having a terrific frustule design, the single cell algae are also well known for their outstanding mechanical properties.
Through the master thesis project, I will perform topology optimizations in order to give a transtibial prosthesis the best structure possible. Indeed, the amputees have high expectations from their engineered limb regarding weight and compliance. Then, the prosthesis appears to be a great case study to use our diatoms inspiration on. Moreover, the perspective of realizing a final product composed of intricated design is nowadays made possible by additive manufacturing processes.
All in all, transtibial prosthesis will be given a brand new and innovative bioinspired structure that shall be lighter and perform better than the ones on the current market.

Quentin Amsellem, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Arts et Métiers ParisTech, Masterthesis

On the one hand, we have composite materials or more precisely long carbon fibre reinforced polymers. With impressive mechanical performances in relation to their mass they are known to be used in the high technology industry: sport, aviation, aerospace, sport cars, design. On the other hand, we have the Nature and its wonderful structures optimised by years of natural selection. Trees, plants, animal skeletons, marine micro-organisms and so many others offer us an inexhaustible source of ideas.
What would be the results if we combined the two: bio-inspired structures + fibre-reinforced materials?
This is exactly the question I asked myself during my master thesis. Taking a tibial prosthesis as a case study, I try to understand the relationship between a complex bio-inspired geometry and the local definition of an anisotropic material and whether the combination of the two improves the overall performance of the prosthesis.

Adrien Simon, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Masterthesis

Nature provides us with infinite sources of inspiration and any living organism could be the subject of an in-depth study. The focus here is on identifying and understanding structural design principles used by nature to do good design.
Diatoms themselves are an extraordinary source of inspiration for structural enthusiasts and this project focuses on the diatom genus Rhizosolenia. This diatom’s silica shell—or frustule—is a slender tube made of uniquely shaped “modules” called copulae. This diatom effectively solves the problem of building a modular—yet stable—tube, and could thus help us in designing similar objects.
The purpose of this study is to understand the performance criteria that led to these unique copula shapes. Having successfully designed a simplified 3D model of a Rhizosolenia frustule using Grasshopper, finite element analyses and optimisations are now underway in an attempt to understand the functional morphology of these copulae