Rapid Assembly Processes of Ordered Inorganic/organic Nanocomposites

The material of seashell nacre is of great interest to material scientists due to its superior mechanical properties and unique bio-compatibility. Natural seashell nacre consists of about 95% of aragonite (a mineral form of CaCO3) and a few percent of biological macromolecules; yet its work of fracture is about three orders of magnitude higher than its mineral constituency. The superior strength and toughness of seashell nacre are attributed to the robust nanostructure in which the protein collagen layers (10–50 nm thick) and aragonite tablets (200–900 nm thick) form an ordered brick-and-mortar structure. The macromolecules act as strong adhesives while the aragonite tablets as the rigid building blocks (Smith et al., 1999). The structure of seashell nacre has inspired material scientists to design and develop various advanced biomimetic materials in the last two decades.