Researchers at the Ford Motor Company in the US are turning to biomimicry, in particular the toepads of geckos, in a quest to find new adhesives that will make the disassembly and recycling of car parts easier.
The glue currently being used to stick foams to plastics and metals is almost impossible to remove. However, a gecko’s toepads which can stick to most surfaces and theoretically support more than 100 kg can be released easily leaving no residue.
“Solving this problem could provide cost savings and certainly an environmental savings,” said Debbie Mielewski, Ford senior technical leader for plastics and sustainability research.
“It means we could increase the recycling of more foam and plastics, and further reduce our environmental footprint.”
Gretchen Hooker from The Biomimicry Institute, said the biomimetic approach is not new. The Japanese Bullet Train was inspired by the kingfisher. Velcro took its cues from a burr. And improved medical needles were developed based on the mosquito.
The Biomimicry Institute is a not-for-profit founded in 2006, working to empower people to create sustainable products and services using biomimicry. It provides a platform to learn and practice biomimicry through multiple design challenges including open innovation, academic-corporate partnerships and corporate-employee challenges where employees get hands-on training while developing new solutions to issues corporations face. AskNature.org, the organization’s online database of biological solutions, offers inspiration to those looking to find answers in biomimicry.
Ford itself has worked for nearly a decade to find nature-inspired technologies, with recent successes in yarn production for seating materials and headliners.
“As we look to further our commitment to reducing our environmental footprint, taking a holistic, biomimetic approach makes sense because nature has efficiencies in design and uses minimal resources,” said Ford’s Carol Kordich. “Nature is the ultimate guide.”
Image of gecko's toepads courtesy of FreeImages.com/Tessa Hatlelid