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Humidity induced softening leads to apparent capillary effect in gecko adhesion
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 February 2011
Abstract
Humidity can lower the stiffness of beta keratin, which is the main component of spatula pads terminated at the bottom of a gecko's toe. To see if this softening can influence gecko adhesion, numerical simulation of the vertical peeling of a spatula pad adhered on a rough surface is performed, which shows that the reduction in material stiffness indeed leads to substantial increases in the pull-off force ″(Chen, B. and Gao, H. International Journal of Applied Mechanics, 2010). This work provides an alternative explanation of experimental observations on the capillary effect in gecko adhesion.
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- Copyright © Materials Research Society 2010