Materialforschung: Impulsgeber Natur (Acatech DISKUSSION)
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acatech DISCUSSION Materials Research: Inspired by Nature Innovation Potential of Biologically Inspired Materials Peter Fratzl, Karin Jacobs, Martin Möller, Thomas Scheibel, Katrin Sternberg (Eds.) acatech DISCUSSION Materials Research: Inspired by Nature Innovation Potential of Biologically Inspired Materials Peter Fratzl, Karin Jacobs, Martin Möller, Thomas Scheibel, Katrin Sternberg (Eds.) The acatech DISCUSSION series This series comprises papers on engineering and technology policy issues. It documents the interdisciplinary discussions at acatech events and in the Academy’s projects and working groups. Responsibility for the contents of these papers lies with their authors. All previous acatech publications are available for download from: www.acatech.de/publikationen Contents Foreword 7 Synopsis and Areas of Research 9 Project 12 1 Introduction 14 2 Chemical Synthesis 19 2.1 The Challenge of Fabricating Lifelike Materials 23 2.2 Construction with DNA 24 2.3 Non-canonical Amino Acids 26 2.4 Biologically Inspired Hybrid Materials 27 2.5 Bio-inspired Elastic Cement 28 2.6 Interview with Lin Römer, AMSilk 29 3 Additive Manufacturing 31 3.1 Interview with Héctor Martínez, CELLINK 33 3.2 Interview with Lutz Kloke, Cellbricks GmbH 34 4 Bio-inspired Lightweight Construction 36 4.1 Bio-inspired Modification of Wood 37 4.2 Example: Fibre Pavilion at the Bundesgartenschau, Heilbronn, 2019 39 4.3 Interview with Stefan Schlichter, Institut für Textiltechnik Augsburg gGmbH 40 5 Soft Robotics 42 5.1 Robots Based on Plants 43 5.2 How an Octopus Inspired Soft Robotics 45 5.3 Interview with Karoline von Häfen, Festo AG & Co. KG 45 6 Bio-inspired Energy Materials 47 6.1 Light as an Energy Source in Materials Development 48 6.2 Catalysts for Artificial Photosynthesis 49 6.3 Cellulose-based Optical Materials 50 6.4 Natural Colourants from Cellulose 51 6.5 Interview with Stefan Buchholz, Evonik Creavis GmbH 52 7 Adhesion and Bonding 54 7.1 Hairs with Unlimited Adhesion 56 7.2 Bio-inspired Adhesive Structures for Robotics and Industry 4.0 58 7.3 Mussel-inspired Adhesion 58 7.4 Friction Reduction and Antifouling with Bionic Coating 59 7.5 Bio-inspired Interface Molecules 60 8 Bio-inspired Biomaterials for Medical Applications 62 8.1 Concepts Behind Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine 63 8.2 Bone Material Properties and Their Role in Breast Cancer Bone Metastasis 65 8.3 Electrospinning Technique for Incorporating Biomimicry in Biomaterials 66 8.4 Bio-inspired Medical Devices for Blood Treatment 68 8.5 The Bionic Ear – Restoring Hearing Through Bio-inspired Technology 69 8.6 Bio-inspired, Fibre-based Structures for Regenerative Medicine 71 9 Smart Material Systems and Artificial Intelligence 72 9.1 Metamaterials and Programmable Materials 72 9.2 Opportunities and Limits of Bio-intelligent Value Creation in Logistics 74 9.3 Organic Iontronic Devices for Neuromorphic Computing 75 9.4 Interview with Henk Jonkers, Green Basilisk 76 10 Interdisciplinary Aspects: Humanities and Creative Disciplines 78 10.1 Matter and Information 79 10.2 Active Matter 80 10.3 Bio-inspired Materiomics 82 10.4 Design with Fibre Structures 85 10.5 Education at the Interface between Biology and Materials Science 86 10.6 Economics and Bio-inspired Materials Research 88 10.7 Interviews with Staff of BASF SE 89 10.7.1 Interview with Jens Rieger, BASF SE 89 10.7.2 Interview with Andreas Mägerlein and Alex Horisberger, BASF designfabrik® 90 10.7.3 Interview with Andreas Wüst, BASF SE 91 11 Bibliometrics, Funding Programmes, Associations 93 11.1 Literature Search 93 11.2 Patent Search 94 11.3 Selected DFG Funding Programmes 95 11.4 Selected German Federal Funding Activities 98 11.5 Interviews with Associations and Institutes 99 11.5.1 Interview with Frank O. R. Fischer, DGM 99 11.5.2 Interview with Kurt Wagemann, DECHEMA 100 11.5.3 Interview with Ljuba Woppowa, VDI 101 11.5.4 Interview with Viola Bronsema, BIO Deutschland e.V. 101 11.5.5 Interview with Alexander Böker, Fraunhofer IAP 103 12 International Perspectives 104 12.1 Interview with Donald Ingber, Wyss Institute at Harvard University, Boston, USA 104 12.2 Interview with Robert Full, UC Berkeley, USA 106 12.3 Interview with Lei Jiang, Beihang University, China 108 12.4 Interview with Xiaodong Chen, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 109 12.5 Interview with Olli Ikkala, Aalto University, Finland 109 12.6 Interview with João Mano, University of Aveiro, Portugal 112 12.7 Interview with Sybrand van der Zwaag and Santiago Garcia Espallargas, Delft University of Technology, Netherlands 113 12.8 Interview with Hisashi Yamamoto, Chubu University, Japan 114 Appendix 116 List of Figures 116 List of Tables 118 References 119 Foreword If biological materials and processes are being ever better re- Foreword searched and understood and in some cases modified and further developed by engineers, then new applications are also possible: for example “smart materials” capable of interacting with their en- Nature has always been a source of and inspiration for inven- vironment may be obtained. The innovation potential of “Bits meet tions and innovations. This is as true of the manufacture of sus- Bio” is particularly relevant, and not just to medical applications. tainable products based on biogenic starting materials as it is of the development of bio-inspired materials, for example for light- Biologically inspired materials research can also play an impor- weight construction in the building and transport sector, novel tant role in achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Develop- surfaces and even health care. Many bio-inspired products have ment Goals and in implementing the German government’s sus- been in use for some time: hook and loop fasteners or water- tainable development strategy. No new products should be repellent coating materials and surfaces inspired by the lotus developed without careful attention being given to future repair leaf are well-known examples of engineering imitating Nature, or mechanisms, reusability or biodegradability. Materials are there- biomimetics in the narrowest sense. fore key to the development of sustainable products and can make a significant contribution to the current “Circular Economy In recent years, both science and engineering have benefited Initiative Deutschland” established by the German Federal Min- greatly from dynamic developments in the “Enabling Technolo- istry of Education and Research. gies”. A good example is biotechnology: since the nineteen nine- ties massive progress has been made, including in Germany, by This discussion paper presents a wide range of examples from vari- bringing together life science findings and processes from the ous disciplines – from chemistry and energy through medicine and field of molecular biology with tools from completely different robotics to art and design. The range of examples is impressive and fields such as process engineering, automation and in particular underlines the interdisciplinarity and the major innovation poten- digitalization. tial of this field of research. We need to translateGermany’s excel- lent research status into sustainable value creation. The use of biotech methods, new manufacturing options such as 3D printing and increasing digitalization, in particular, continue At this juncture, we should like to offer our sincere thanks to to open up ever broader prospects for bio-inspired materials sci- everyone who has contributed to this DISCUSSION, the authors, ence. There is consequently a need for modern, highly efficient other experts from the worlds of science, associations and busi- analytical methods, semi-automated systems and the evaluation ness who have made themselves available for interview, and to of significant volumes of data. the project team. Prof. Dr. Dieter Spath Prof. Dr. Martina Schraudner President acatech Member Executive Board acatech 7 Synopsis and Areas of Research In conjunction with increased digitalization and progress in Arti- Synopsis and Areas ficial Intelligence, it will for example be possible to develop ma- terials, which have information about their subsequent use incor- of Research porated into their structure from the outset. This holds the promise of progress in additive manufacturing such as 3D print- ing of tissue, for example. Self-assembly processes and novel Innovation Potential of Biologically self-healing materials with an extended service life do not only play a part in medicine and pharmaceutics, but will increasingly Inspired Materials be used in all fields of technology. More efficient cross-scale pro- cessing methods for targeted nano- and micropatterning of sur- Peter Fratzl, Karin Jacobs, Martin Möller, faces can be used not only in the development of adhesives and Thomas Scheibel, Katrin Sternberg bonding agents but also for the surface treatment of ships’ hulls. Soft robotics enables mechanically rigid robotics to evolve to- wards more seamless interaction with the natural environment. Materials already play a crucial part in virtually all products and areas of technology. Their significance to our daily lives is set to It is clear from these selected examples that bio-inspired materi- increase still further: demographic changes, greater shortages of als have the potential to make a decisive impact in the next few resources and climate change require a more sustainable econo- years on Germany as a location for research and technology. my, which is where materials research is expected to make an even They will make a major contribution to achieving the targets set greater contribution. Key concepts, such as more efficient materi- by Germany’s Hightech Strategie 2025 and to the interdiscipli- als synthesis and less wasteful materials production, recyclable or nary “From Biology to Innovation” agenda, which is currently biodegradable products, smart, i.e. self-repairing or self-adapting being put together, and to Germany’s yet to be developed “Circu- materials or indeed increasing customization, for example in med- lar Economy” roadmap. With its excellent research landscape ical applications make one thing clear: changing requirements and as a prime location for business and innovation, Germany is lead to increased complexity in materials research.