title: Bio-inspired Murray materials for mass transfer and activity.
abstract: Both plants and animals possess analogous tissues containing hierarchical networks of pores, with pore size ratios that have evolved to maximize mass transport and rates of reactions. The underlying physical principles of this optimized hierarchical design are embodied in Murray's law. However, we are yet to realize the benefit of mimicking nature's Murray networks in synthetic materials due to the challenges in fabricating vascularized structures. Here we emulate optimum natural systems following Murray's law using a bottom-up approach. Such bio-inspired materials, whose pore sizes decrease across multiple scales and finally terminate in size-invariant units like plant stems, leaf veins and vascular and respiratory systems provide hierarchical branching and precise diameter ratios for connecting multi-scale pores from macro to micro levels. Our Murray material mimics enable highly enhanced mass exchange and transfer in liquid-solid, gas-solid and electrochemical reactions and exhibit enhanced performance in photocatalysis, gas sensing and as Li-ion battery electrodes.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Advanced Technology for Materials Synthesis and Processing, Wuhan University of Technology, Loushi Road 122, Wuhan 430070, China.
authors.forename: Xianfeng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Advanced Technology for Materials Synthesis and Processing, Wuhan University of Technology, Loushi Road 122, Wuhan 430070, China.
authors.forename: Guofang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Advanced Technology for Materials Synthesis and Processing, Wuhan University of Technology, Loushi Road 122, Wuhan 430070, China.
authors.forename: Chao
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Advanced Technology for Materials Synthesis and Processing, Wuhan University of Technology, Loushi Road 122, Wuhan 430070, China.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: NSF/UNM Center for Micro-Engineered Materials, Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA.
authors.forename: Darren
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dunphy
authors.affiliation: Cambridge Graphene Centre, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0FA, UK.
authors.forename: Tawfique
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hasan
authors.affiliation: NSF/UNM Center for Micro-Engineered Materials, Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA.|Advanced Materials Lab, Sandia National Laboratories, 1001 University Boulevard SE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106, USA.
authors.forename: C Jeffrey
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Brinker
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Advanced Technology for Materials Synthesis and Processing, Wuhan University of Technology, Loushi Road 122, Wuhan 430070, China.|Laboratory of Inorganic Materials Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Namur, 61 rue de Bruxelles, B-5000 Namur, Belgium.|Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, Herschel Road, Cambridge CB3 9AL, UK.
authors.forename: Bao-Lian
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Su