Kirigami Structures: Extraordinary ‘Tool’ That Supports 14,000 Times Its Own Weight

Eddie Gonzales Jr. – MessageToEagle.com – Inspired by the Japanese art form of kirigami – a version of origami – that allows materials to be cut and reconnected using tape or glue, researchers have developed a new solution for creating lightweight, strong, and foldable structures using soft materials.

A close-up view of the weight-bearing kirigami structures – each raised triangle platform is supported by neighboring flaps (shown outlined in blue) that work together to hold the structure in place without tape or adhesive. 

In their paper,  they write:

“We create structures that can support many times their weight, are light and can be shipped flat, folding into the desired shape when needed. We demonstrate this with ordinary cardboard and provide an explanation as to how the interleaved assembly of the kirigami edges along with the periodic structure of the folds and cuts creates a mechanism to transfer downward force into shear stress, allowing a piece of cardboard to support 14 000 times its weight without pins or adhesives.

We conclude that the super strength arises from a change in boundary conditions on the supporting walls. We transfer our construction to plastic sheets and copper foil and demonstrate that the collective effect of the folds, cuts, and stresses can be transferred to other materials. This provides a new set of motifs for lightweight, deployable structures.

Someday, you might sit on it…”

“The usual kirigami route is to cut that off and tape it. Here was this structure that didn’t require tape, it had cuts, and it was really strong. Suddenly, we have this system that we hadn’t anticipated at all,” Professor Randall Kamien of the University of Pennsylvania, said a statement.

These kirigami structures can support 14,000 times their weight and, because they don’t require adhesives or fasteners, can easily be flattened and refolded.

The tilted, triangular design was strongest when the flaps were undamaged and untapped, and it was also stronger than the same design with vertical walls.

“With the vertical ones, there’s no way to turn a downward force into a sideways force without bending the paper,” says Kamien.

The researchers also found that the paper-to-paper overlap from leaving the cut flaps in place allowed the triangles to press up against their neighbors, which helped distribute the vertical load. The research shows how kirigami can be used as a “tool” for scientists and engineers, this time for creating strong, rigid objects out of soft materials.

“We figured out how to use materials that can bend and stretch, and we can actually strengthen these materials,” says Xinyu Wang, a Ph.D. student at Southeast University. One possible application could be to make inexpensive, lightweight, and deployable structures, such as temporary shelter tents that are strong and durable but can also be easily assembled and disassembled.

Written by Eddie Gonzales Jr. – MessageToEagle.com Staff