Biomimetic. Sustainable. Functional.
Research
The oceans abound with a fascinating array of materials produced by nature. Barnacles cement themselves to rocks. Starfish use adhesives for locomotion. Oysters aggregate to build reef structures. Mussels generate an impressive adhesive that can bond to nearly any surface. Our laboratory is working to understand how such biological materials function, design synthetic mimics, and develop applications for these materials.
We study how nature makes adhesives, and we continuously search for better ways to be inspired by what nature provides. By utilizing natural products and synthetic materials, we are able to make competitively strong materials without threatening ecosystems.
Latest Publications
The invisible sustainability problem of glues and how to solve it
In this publication, Dr. Jonathan Wilker discusses the barriers of implementing sustainable solutions in the adhesive market and some up-and-coming routes that show promise for the future.
Burst Pressure and Fatigue Durability of Commercially Available Duraplasty Sealants
We examined the performance of 6 different commercial sealants for dural repair.
Mimicking Oyster Reefs to Generate Cements with Enhanced Performance
Check out our bio-mimetic oyster inspired cement! Herein we discuss the effect that various catechol or phosphate-containing terpolymers have on our optimized cement formulations.