Biomimetics includes a sophisticated control of structural properties at multiple length scales, as nature employs, yet this has very often been missing in the field of bioinspired adhesion, in turn, the performance of those manmade adhesives is yet far lower than the bioadhesion, e.g., mussels. In this talk, we overview the major breakthroughs in this field, and highlight the recent advances reflecting the essential biomimetic design principle “systematic translation at the different length scales”. We will also discuss the widespread misconception that marine bioinspired wet adhesion depends on a single molecular entity (i.e., catechol or Dopa) and is instead bound to the choreographic coordination of key elements in the natural gluing system; that is essential for biomimetic wet adhesion become reality.

Paradigm shift in mussel-inspired adhesion

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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