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Bioadhesives

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Handbook of Adhesion Technology

Abstract

Bioadhesion is a versatile tool used by many organisms for a variety of purposes. It has roles to play in construction, predation, defense, and attachment and covers different concepts based on biochemical and mechanical principles. The specific request on the bond combined with millions of years of evolution results in diverse inspirations for medical and technical applications. This requires knowledge of the adhesives themselves in terms of composition, structural design, and interaction with surfaces. This chapter gives an overview about natural adhesives and biological adhesives leading to bioinspired applications. The terminology used in this chapter is based on the adhesive’s origin and usage and the underlying concept: while natural adhesives are composed of bio-based raw materials for artificial applications, biological adhesives are expressed by natural organisms for versatile purposes. The latter in particular can lead to bioinspired applications that are not restricted to adhesion, including concepts to avoid adhesion as in terms of antifouling. Both kinds of adhesive, i.e., natural and biological, are relevant for biocompatible adhesives. This characteristic is mandatory for applications as in cosmetics, food, or medicine. In view of their interaction with vital tissues and their medical eligibility, a brief digression into biomimetic adhesives is given.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Adhesive Bonding Technology and Surfaces, Adhesives and Polymer Chemistry, Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials (IFAM), Bremen, Germany

    Katharina Richter & Ingo Grunwald

  2. Austrian Cluster for Tissue Regeneration, Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Experimental and Clinical Traumatology, Vienna, Austria

    Janek von Byern

  3. Faculty of Life Science, Core Facility Cell Imaging and Ultrastructure Research, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Janek von Byern

Authors
  1. Katharina Richter
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  2. Ingo Grunwald
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  3. Janek von Byern
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Katharina Richter or Ingo Grunwald .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Lucas F. M. da Silva

  2. Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Esslingen University of Applied Sciences, Esslingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

    Andreas Oechsner

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom

    Robert Adams

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Richter, K., Grunwald, I., von Byern, J. (2018). Bioadhesives. In: da Silva, L., Oechsner, A., Adams, R. (eds) Handbook of Adhesion Technology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-42087-5_53-2

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