Bioinspired self-healing materials: lessons from nature

• Joseph C. Cremaldi and
• Bharat Bhushan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 907–935, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.85

• avenues of insight and research into self-healing materials. Keywords: animals; biomimetics, bioinspired; capsules; functional coatings; healing mechanisms; plants; protective surfaces; self-healing; vascular systems; Review Introduction The ability to heal is intrinsic to all multicellular organisms

• with healing mechanisms to fight for survival against injury and infection. In general, vertebrates (animals with a backbone) are more biologically complex animals than invertebrates (animals without a backbone), which is matched by complexity in healing. Invertebrates tend to have shorter lifetimes

• and describe healing mechanisms in an organized manner is important. The largest differences in healing occur between herbaceous and woody plants. Herbaceous plants are those that die down to ground level each year and then grow again. This includes perennials, biennials, and annuals. Annuals are