Fast prototype and rapid construction of three-dimensional and multi-scaled pitcher for controlled drainage by systematic biomimicry

Abstract

Biomimetic materials that use natural wisdom to solve practical problems are developing rapidly. The trend for systematic biomimicry is towards in-situ characterization of natural creatures with high spatial resolutions. Furthermore, rapid reconstruction of digital twin models with the same complex features as the prototype is indispensable. However, it faces bottlenecks and limits in fast characterization and fabrication, precise parameter optimization, geometric deviations control, and quality prediction. To solve these challenges, here, we demonstrate a state-of-the-art method taking advantage of micro-computed tomography and three-dimensional printing for the fast characterization of the pitcher plant Nepenthes x ventrata and fabrication of its biomimetic model to obtain a superior drainage controller with multiscale structures with precise surface morphology optimization and geometric deviation control. The film-rupture-based drainage dynamic and mechanisms are characterized by x-ray and high-speed videography, which determines the crucial structures for unique directional drainage. Then the optimized artificial pitchers are further developed into sustained drainage devices with novel applications, such as detection, reaction, and smoke control.