#  Shark Skin-Inspired Designs Improve Aerodynamic Performance 

 





February 07, 2018

 

 

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 **George Lauder** has teamed with Harvard engineers and colleagues from the University of South Carolina to find a bioinspired structure that could improve aerodynamic performance of airplanes, wind turbines, drones, and cars. The study, published in the [Journal of the Royal Society Interface](http://rsif.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/15/139/20170828), looked at sharkskin denticles (thousands and thousands of small scales) to determine a decades-old mystery of their function. Past research focused mainly on drag-reducing properties of denticles, but Lauder and his team instead looked at whether the denticles' shapes were best suited for increasing lift. The study showed shark-inspired vortex generators achieved lift-to-drag ratio improvements up to 323 percent and has opened the door to exploring more bioinspired aerodynamic designs. [Harvard Gazette](https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2018/02/in-aerodynamic-performance-sharkskin-model-offers-more-lift-less-drag/?utm_source=SilverpopMailing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Daily%20Gazette%2020180208)

#####  *Image: Courtesy of James Weaver/Harvard University, Harvard Gazette*



 

 

 



 

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- [ 2018 ](/news-year/2018)