Bamboo-inspired optimal design for functionally graded hollow cylinders

Motohiro Sato; Akio Inoue; Hiroyuki Shima

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0175029

Bamboo-inspired optimal design for functionally graded hollow cylinders

PLoS One. 2017 May 3;12(5):e0175029. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0175029. eCollection 2017.

Authors

Motohiro Sato¹, Akio Inoue², Hiroyuki Shima³

Affiliations

¹ Division of Engineering and Policy for Sustainable Environment, Faculty of Engineering, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan.
² Faculty of Environmental and Symbiotic Sciences, Prefectural University of Kumamoto, Kumamoto, Japan.
³ Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Yamanashi, Kofu, Yamanashi, Japan.

Abstract

The optimal distribution of the reinforcing fibers for stiffening hollow cylindrical composites is explored using the linear elasticity theory. The spatial distribution of the vascular bundles in wild bamboo, a nature-designed functionally graded material, is the basis for the design. Our results suggest that wild bamboos maximize their flexural rigidity by optimally regulating the radial gradation of their vascular bundle distribution. This fact provides us with a plant-mimetic design principle that enables the realization of high-stiffness and lightweight cylindrical composites.

MeSH terms

Bambusa*
Equipment Design*
Models, Theoretical

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (https://www.jsps.go.jp/english/index.html) KAKENHI Grant Numbers JP25390147 (HS), JP26292088 (AI), JP15H04207 (MS), JP16K12823 (MS) and JP16K14948 (AI). The first author (MS) expresses appreciation for the research grant from the Suhara memorial foundation. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.