• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2011.05a
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• pp.10.2-10.2
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• 2011

The design and synthesis of protein-like polymers is a fundamental challenge in materials science. A biomimetic approach is to explore the impact of monomer sequence on non-natural polymer structure and function. We present the aqueous self-assembly of two peptoid polymers into extremely thin two-dimensional (2D) crystalline sheets directed by periodic amphiphilicity, electrostatic recognition and aromatic interactions. Peptoids are sequence-specific, oligo-N-substituted glycine polymers designed to mimic the structure and functionality of proteins. Mixing a 1:1 ratio of two oppositely charged peptoid 36 mers of a specific sequence in aqueous solution results in the formation of giant, free-floating sheets with only 2.7 nm thickness. Direct visualization of aligned individual peptoid chains in the sheet structure was achieved using aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy. Specific binding of a protein to ligand-functionalized sheets was also demonstrated. The synthetic flexibility and biocompatibility of peptoids provide a flexible and robust platform for integrating functionality into defined 2D nanostructures. In the later part of my talk, we describe the use of metal ions to construct two-dimensional hybrid films that have the ability to self-heal. Incubation of biomimetic peptoid polymers with specific divalent metal ions results in the spontaneous formation of uniform multilayers at the air-water interface. We anticipate that ease of synthesis and transfer of these two-dimensional materials may have many potential applications in catalysis, gas storage and sensing, optics, nanomaterial synthesis, and environmentally responsive scaffolds.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.225-235
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• 2006

With the discovery in plants of the proteinaceous forisome crystalloid (Knoblauch, et al. 2003), a novel, non-living, ATP-independent biological material became available to the designer of smart materials for advanced actuating and sensing. The in vitro studies of Knoblauch, et al. show that forisomes (2-4 micron wide and 10-40 micron long) can be repeatedly stimulated to contract and expand anisotropically by shifting either the ambient pH or the ambient calcium ion concentration. Because of their unique abilities to develop and reverse strains greater than 20% in time periods less than one second, forisomes have the potential to outperform current smart materials as advanced, biomimetic, multi-functional, smart sensors or actuators. Probing forisome material properties is an immediate need to lay the foundation for synthesizing forisomebased smart materials for health monitoring of structural integrity in civil infrastructure and for aerospace hardware. Microfluidics is a growing, vibrant technology with increasingly diverse applications. Here, we use microfluidics to study the surface interaction between forisome and substrate and the conformational dynamics of forisomes within a confined geometry to lay the foundation for forisome-based smart materials synthesis in controlled and repeatable environment.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Industry Convergence
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.201-209
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• 2023

Recently, fiber-reinforced composites have been widely used in various industrials fields. In this study, the mechanical behavior, especially fracture behavior, of biomimetic fiber-reinforced composites subjected to pressure loading was analyzed using finite element analysis (FEA). The fiber alignments in the biomimetic composites formed a helicoidal structure, wherein a stacking sequence involved a gradual rotation of each ply in the multi-layered laminated composites. For comparison, cross-ply composite samples with fibers arranged at 0° and 90° were prepared and analyzed. In addition, the mechanical behavior was analyzed based on combinations of the stacking sequence of carbon-fiber composites and glass-fiber composites. The FEA results showed that, when compared with the cross-ply samples, the mechanical properties of the biomimetic composites were considerably improved under pressure loading, which was applied to one side of the composites. Thus, the biomimetic helicoidal structure significantly improved the mechanical properties of the composites. Placing materials having high elasticity and strength in the outermost layers (the layer of the side on which pressure was applied and the opposite side layer) of the composites also significantly contributed to improving the mechanical properties of the composites.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Precision Engineering Conference
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• 2010.11a
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• pp.591-592
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• 2010

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.47 no.2
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• pp.127-131
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• 2010

Biomimetic whisker-like apatite was formed on thermally and NaOH-treated titanium powder in a simulated body fluid (SBF). In the early process of the SBF immersion, the surface structure of the titanium powder was loosened, possibly due to the dissolution of $Na^+$ ions on the surface of the titanium powder into SBF. When immersed for 7 days in SBF, fine precipitates appeared on the titanium surfaces; the coating layer (<200 nm in thickness) consisted of nanostructured, amorphous whisker-like and particulate phase, observed by TEM. With the extension of the immersion time to 16 days, the chrysanthemum flower type morphology of carbonated hydroxyapatite with a nanocrystallinity was developed on the surface of the titanium powder.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
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• v.33 no.7
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• pp.571-577
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• 2016

In this paper, we propose a novel propulsion method for a Biomimetic underwater robot, which is a bio-inspired approach. The proposed propulsion method mimics the pectoral fins of a real fish. Pectoral fins of real fish are able to propel and change direction. We designed the propulsion mechanism of 1 D.O.F. that has two functions (propel and change direction). We named this propulsion system 'Flipper'. The proposed propulsion method can control forward, pitch and yaw motion using the Flipper. We made an experimental underwater robot system and verified the proposed propulsion method. We measured its maximum speed and turning motion using an experimental underwater robot system. We also analyzed the thrust force from the maximum speed, using the thrust equation. Experimental results showed that our propulsion method enabled the thrust system of the biomimetic robot.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2011.10a
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• pp.2.2-2.2
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• 2011

The central strategy in tissue engineering involves a biomaterial scaffold as a delivery carrier of cells and a depot to deliver bioactive molecules. The ability of scaffolds to control cellular response to direct particular repair and regeneration processes is essential to obtain functional tissue engineering constructs. Therefore, many efforts have been made to understand local interactions of cells with their extracellular matrix (ECM) microenvironment and exploit these interactions for designing an ideal scaffold mimicking the chemical, physiological, and structural features of native ECM. ECM is composed of a number of biomacromolecules including proteins, glycosaminoglycans, and proteoglycans, which are assembled together to form complex 3-dimensional network. Electrospinning is a process to generate highly porous 3-dimensional fibrous structure with nano to micro scaled-diameter, which can closely mimic the structure of ECM. In this presentation, our approaches to develop biomimetic electrospun fibers for modulation of cell function will be discussed.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 1998.08a
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• pp.142.3-142
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• 1998

• Composites Research
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.50-55
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• 2019

In this study, we investigated the effect of fiber alignment in helicoidal structure on the mechanical properties of biomimetic fiber-reinforced composites. Using finite element analysis, circular biomimetic fiber composites were designed and studied. Various amounts of pressure loads were applied to a surface of the composites, and then bending and failure behaviors of the composites were analyzed. The results showed various failure morphologies according to the orientation of the fibers, and it turned out that the fiber alignment in helicoidal structure significantly improved the bending strength of the composite under pressure loading. This was because the fiber alignment in various directions for each layer dispersed effectively the fracture energy from the external load into multiple directions.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
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• v.28 no.11
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• pp.1242-1250
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• 2011

Several biomimetic artificial muscles including the electro-active synthetic polymers (SSEBS, PSMI/PVDF, SPEEK/PVDF, SPSE, XSPSE, PVA/SPTES and SPEI), bio-polymers (Bacterial Cellulose and Cellulose Acetate) and nano-composite (SSEBS-CNF, SSEBS-$C_{60}$, Nafion-$C_{60}$ and PHF-SPEI) actuators are introduced in this paper. Also, some applications of the developed biomimetic actuators are explained including biomimetic robots and biomedical active devices. Present results show that the developed electro-active polymer actuators with high-performance bending actuation can be promising smart materials applicable to diverse applications.