Science

Judi Lynn

(160,515 posts) Tue Jun 16, 2020, 01:14 PM Jun 2020

Volcano-dwelling beetle inspires new 'passive cooling' material

It helps disperse heat and reflect sunlight.

Alexandru Micu by Alexandru Micu June 16, 2020

Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering, alongside scientists from China and Sweden, have created a new material that passively cools itself down

A Longicorn Beetle.
Image credits Flickr / patrickkavanagh.

The material was inspired by the wing structure of a longicorn beetle species native to volcanic areas in Southeast Asia. The beetles rely on self-cooling tissues to allow them to live in such inhospitable places.

Cool new materials

“Anywhere that needs cooling, this can help,” said Yuebing Zheng, an associate professor in the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering. “Refrigerators, air conditioners and other methods consume large amounts of energy, but this is cooling by itself.”

While the insect uses its body’s ability to regulate heat and gain access to an environment its competitors can’t live in, the researchers plan to use the new material it inspired to help cool everything from buildings to electronic devices in an environmentally friendly manner.

The researchers first had to determine what gave the beetle (Neocerambyx Gigas, one of 26,000 species of longhorn beetle) its cooling capability. They discovered that their wings are covered in triangular “fluffs” that disperse body heat while also reflecting sunlight.

More:
https://www.zmescience.com/science/longicorn-beetle-coating-heat-9325234/