Why researchers ran a car over an insect?
Squash- resistant beetle armour provides clues to tougher planes
It’s a beetle that can withstand bird pecks, animal stomps and even being rolled over by a Toyota Camry. Now scientists are studying what the bug’s crush- resistant shell could teach them about designing stronger planes and buildings.
“This beetle is super tough,” said Purdue University civil engineer Pablo Zavattieri, who was among a group of researchers that ran over the insectwith a car as part of a new study.
Can’t crush it
So, how does the seemingly indestructible insect do it? The species— aptly named diabolical ironclad beetle — owes its might to an unusual armour that is layered and pieced together like a jigsaw, according to the study, part of an $ 8 million project funded by the US Air Force to explore how the biology of creatures such as mantis shrimp and bighorn sheep could help develop impactresistantmaterials.
The beetle’s design could help inspire more durable structures and vehicles.
To understand what gives the inch- long beetle its strength, researchers first tested how much squishing it could take. The species , withstood compression of about 39,000 times its ownweight.
For a 200- pound man, that would be like surviving a 7.8- million- pound crush.
Researchers then used electron microscopes and CT scans to examine the beetle’s exoskeleton and figure out what made it so strong.
“When you pull them apart,” Zavattieri said, “it doesn’t break catastrophically. It justdeforms a littlebit. That’s crucial for the beetle.’’
It could also be useful for engineers who design aircrafts and other vehicles and buildings with materials such as steel, plastic and plaster. Currently, engineers rely on pins, bolts, welding and adhesives to hold everything together.