Abstract
Despite the extensive investigation on the structure of natural biological materials, insufficient attention has been paid to the structural imperfections by which the mechanical properties of synthetic materials are dominated. In this study, the structure of bivalve Saxidomus purpuratus shell has been systematically characterized quantitatively on multiple length scales from millimeter to sub-nanometer. It is revealed that hierarchical imperfections are intrinsically involved in the crossed-lamellar structure of the shell despite its periodically packed platelets. In particular, various favorable characters which are always pursued in synthetic materials, e.g. nanotwins and low-angle misorientations, have been incorporated herein. The possible contributions of these imperfections to mechanical properties are further discussed. It is suggested that the imperfections may serve as structural adaptations, rather than detrimental defects in the real sense, to help improve the mechanical properties of natural biological materials. This study may aid in understanding the optimizing strategies of structure and properties designed by nature, and accordingly, provide inspiration for the design of synthetic materials.
Highlights
Of shells has been widely mimicked in exploiting high-performance structural materials[3,18,21]
Whereas this does facilitate a direct capture of main structural features, it seems quite different from the general scenario for synthetic materials, especially from the physical metallurgy perspective
It is noted that the outer calcite layer has been verified to be an intrinsic structure in the present S. purpuratus shell by examining more than ten shells
Summary
Of shells has been widely mimicked in exploiting high-performance structural materials[3,18,21]. The mechanical properties can be effectively tailored by controlling the generation, interaction, and annihilation of dislocations[1,2,27] In this respect, interfaces (such as grain boundaries, phase boundaries and twin boundaries) and inclusions, known as the two- and three-dimensional imperfections respectively, play an important role in strengthening materials by hindering the dislocation motion[1,2]. Interfaces (such as grain boundaries, phase boundaries and twin boundaries) and inclusions, known as the two- and three-dimensional imperfections respectively, play an important role in strengthening materials by hindering the dislocation motion[1,2] They may act as possible stress concentrators to promote crack initiation and propagation, leading to premature failure[1]. It is expected that the elucidation of naturally-occurring structural imperfections may help unravel new mechanisms for improving properties designed by nature, and aid in the design of synthetic materials
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