Pragya Akanksha, Ghosh Tushar K
Department of Textile Engineering Chemistry and Science, Fiber, and Polymer Science Program, Wilson College of Textiles, North Carolina State University, North Carolina State University, 1020 Main Campus Drive, Raleigh, NC, 27606, USA.
Adv Mater. 2023 Dec;35(49):e2300912. doi: 10.1002/adma.202300912. Epub 2023 Oct 22.
Functionally gradient materials (FGM) have gradual variations in their properties along one or more dimensions due to local compositional or structural distinctions by design. Traditionally, hard materials (e.g., metals, ceramics) are used to design and fabricate FGMs; however, there is increasing interest in polymer-based soft and compliant FGMs mainly because of their potential application in the human environment. Soft FGMs are ideally suitable to manage interfacial problems in dissimilar materials used in many emerging devices and systems for human interaction, such as soft robotics and electronic textiles and beyond. Soft systems are ubiquitous in everyday lives; they are resilient and can easily deform, absorb energy, and adapt to changing environments. Here, the basic design and functional principles of biological FGMs and their manmade counterparts are discussed using representative examples. The remarkable multifunctional properties of natural FGMs resulting from their sophisticated hierarchical structures, built from a relatively limited choice of materials, offer a rich source of new design paradigms and manufacturing strategies for manmade materials and systems for emerging technological needs. Finally, the challenges and potential pathways are highlighted to leverage soft materials' facile processability and unique properties toward functional FGMs.
功能梯度材料（FGM）由于设计上的局部成分或结构差异，其性能沿一个或多个维度逐渐变化。传统上，硬质材料（如金属、陶瓷）用于设计和制造功能梯度材料；然而，基于聚合物的柔软且柔顺的功能梯度材料越来越受到关注，主要是因为它们在人类环境中的潜在应用。柔软的功能梯度材料非常适合解决许多用于人类交互的新兴设备和系统（如软体机器人和电子纺织品等）中不同材料之间的界面问题。柔软系统在日常生活中无处不在；它们具有弹性，能够轻松变形、吸收能量并适应不断变化的环境。在此，将通过代表性示例讨论生物功能梯度材料及其人造对应物的基本设计和功能原理。天然功能梯度材料由相对有限的材料选择构建而成，具有复杂的层次结构，从而展现出卓越的多功能特性，为满足新兴技术需求的人造材料和系统提供了丰富的新设计范例和制造策略来源。最后，强调了利用柔软材料的易加工性和独特性能来制造功能梯度材料所面临的挑战和潜在途径。
