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Shark Skin Morphology and Hydrodynamic Properties
Shark Skin Morphology and Hydrodynamic Properties
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ast-swimming fish like ship’s hull, the application of In contrast to most fish spe- able properties with regard to
sailfish, tuna and shark coatings with a smooth surface cies, the skin of sharks is not mechanical protection, disease
have been the subject of was postulated as an optimal covered by slime but is rough prevention and hydrodynamics.
numerous investigations on condition. The development like sandpaper. It contains only
swimming behaviour, body of self-polishing polymers for few unicellular mucous cells Scales
morphology and skin topog- underwater coatings seemed to without producing a slimy layer The presence of hard placoid
raphy to reveal their hydro- fulfil the requirements of foul- on top of the scales. Neverthe- scales (dermal denticles) in
dynamic properties. Like sub- ing prevention and drag reduc- less, the thin mucous layer in the skin of elasmobranch fish
marines, animals swimming tion, creating a smooth surface. between the scales seems to has been noted for as long as
through the water experience As the mucus of fish species facilitate the vortex generation sharks have been caught and
three types of drag that impede like sailfish or tuna is one of on shark scales (Figure 1), and has served as an attractive mod-
their movement: form drag the most effective surface layers induce a ”fluid roller bearing” el for shipbuilders. Due to its
due to a difference in pressure for drag reduction (as high as effect (Bhushan, 2010; Videler, structure, shark skin has been
around the body (residual re- 60%), its hydrodynamic prop- 1995). As some shark species used as sandpaper or as a cov-
sistance in ships), drag due to erties have attracted much at- are very fast swimmers and have er for weapons. Indeed, shark
lift (ditto), and skin friction due tention by researchers seeking adapted their morphology in skin has several functions. Its
to boundary layer formation to optimise smooth coatings 450 million-years of evolution, protection against mechanical
(frictional resistance in ships). (Hoyt, 1975; Bushnell and it can be assumed that even a damage and its hydrodynamic
To achieve low friction along a Moore, 1991). “rough” surface exhibits favour- properties seem to be espe-
Figure 1: Skin near the gills of bonnethead shark (Sphyrna tiburo) with Figure 2: Skin of bonnethead shark (Sphyrna tiburo), transversal
rounded scales and mucus- producing cells (mc) between the scales section of placoid scale with riblets (arrows). psc = placoid scale,
creating the ”fluid roller bearing” effect , drm = skin, bar = 50 µm drm = skin, bar = 50 µm
References
Bechert, D.W., Hoppe, G., Reif, W.E. (1985)
On the drag reduction of the shark skin.
AIAA Shear Flow Control Conference, Boul-
der, Colorado, 1 – 18.
Bechert, D.W., Bruse, M., Hage, W. (2000)
Experiments with three-dimensional
riblets as an idealized model of shark skin.
Exp. Fluids, 28, 403 – 412.
Bhushan, D.B. (2010) Shark-skin surfaces
for fluid-drag reduction in turbulent flow: a
review. Philos. Transact. A Math. Phys. Eng.
Sci., 368, 4775 – 4806.
Bushnell, D.M., Moore, K.J. (1991) Drag red-
uction in nature. Ann. Rev. Fluid Mech. 23,
65 – 79.
Cheung, P. (1992) Parasitic diseases of
elasmobranchs. In: Stoskopf, M.K. (ed.) Fish
Medicine, Saunders, Philad. 782 – 807.
Han, X., Zhang, D.Y., Li, X., Li, Y.Y. (2008)
Bio-replicated forming of the biomimetic
drag-reducing surfaces in large area based
on shark skin. Chin. Sci. Bull. 53, 10, 1587
– 1592.
Lang, A.W., Motta, P., Hidalgo, P., Westcott,
M. (2008) Bristled shark skin: a microgeo-
metry for boundary layer control? Bioinsp.
Biomim. 3, 1 – 9.
Lang, A.W., Motta, P., Hueter, R., Jones,
E., Hidalgo, P., Wheelus, J., Medelson, L.,
Scale patterns of various species of fast sharks. Smith, D., Habegger, L. (2010) Experimental
studies to reveal the boundary layer con-
trol mechanisms of shark skin. IMA work-
shop, Natural locomotion in fluids and on
surfaces: swimming, flying, and sliding.
lar to the flow direction – mim- In conclusion it can be stated flect to a very simplified degree Poster.
icking the bristled scales - were that shark skin has a three di- the real topography and flexible Nitschke, P. (1982) Experimentelle Un-
performed by Scholle and Ak- mensional surface topogra- properties of the skin in living, tersuchungen der turbulenten Strömung
in glatten und längsgerillten Rohren. Di-
sel (2006). They revealed an phy that includes scales with actively swimming sharks. Even plomarb. Univ. Göttingen.
induction of vortices and re- streamwise riblets, and the with these simplified models, Oeffner, J., Lauder, G.V. (2012) The hydro-
dynamic function of shark skin and two
duction in drag. In a follow-up shark can adapt its skin to in- a drag reduction of up to 10% biomimetic applications. J. Exp. Biol., 215,
study Lang et al. (2008, 2010) creasing speed with transversal has been reported. Technical 785 – 795.
investigated in detail the effect riblets composed of erected approaches that are closer to Peng, Y.L., Lin, C.G., Wang, L. (2009) The
preliminary study on antifouling mecha-
of bristled shark skin caused by scales that lead to the genera- complex shark skin structure nism of shark skin. Advanc. Mat. Res. 79-
the erection of scales at various tion of primary, secondary and and function may result in 82, 977 – 980.
angles. They tried to build rep- tertiary vortices. higher degrees of drag reduc- Reif, W.E. (1985) Morphology and hydrody-
namic effects of the scales of fast swim-
licas of the skin of adult short- To avoid this complexity, some tion but are unequivocally very ming sharks. Fortschr. Zool., 30, 483 – 485.
fin mako (Isurus oxyrhinchus) investigators used the skin of difficult to achieve (Oeffner Reif, W.E., Dinkelacker, A. (1982) Hydrody-
with scales bristled perpendic- dead sharks with flattened scales & Lauder, 2012). Up to now, namics of the squamation in fast swimming
sharks. N. Jb. Geol. Paleont. Abh. 164, 184
ular to the skin. Experiments as a template to create hard shark skin serves as a model – 187.
modelling this extreme angle PMMA ”negatives” and PDMS or delivers the brand name for Scholle, M, Aksel, N. (2006) Shark skin ef-
of bristling confirmed the for- soft ”positives.” Even this simpli- several products claiming to fect in creeping films. Physics. Fluid Dyn.
May, 1 – 4.
mation of embedded vortices fied shark skin displayed a drag- be biomimetic. A close look at Videler, J.J. (1975) Body surface adapta-
within the inter-denticular cav- reduction effect of 8.25% in wa- most of these products or coat- tions to boundary-layer dynamics. Symp.
Soc. Exp. Biol., 49, 1 – 20.
ities. The authors suggest that ter tunnel experiments (Han et ings reveals quite simplified
at low Reynolds numbers flow al., 2008). As mentioned above, adaptations of complex shark Wainwright, S.A., Vosburgh, F., Hebrank,
J.H. (1978) Shark skin: function in locomo-
over d-type surface roughness, other researchers created mod- skin, if similarities exist at all. tion. Science 202, 747 – 749.
embedded vortices may reduce els with extremely erect scales
skin friction drag through the (90°), observing drag-reducing
”fluid roller bearing” effect effects as well (cit. op. Lang et
(Figure 3). The mucus between al., 2008). To combine all con-
the scales supports this drag- ditions in which living sharks
reducing effect (Figure 1). Thus can shape their skin according
these embedded vortices, anal- to speed is hard to achieve. Fur-
ogous to the dimples of a golf thermore, the boundary layer of
ball, may work as a boundary a swimming fish is complicated
layer control mechanism to de- due to the permanent undula-
lay or even prevent flow sepa- tion and definitely different
ration. Bechert et al. (1985, from one over a rigid plate, e.g. Figure 3: Primary,
2000) pointed out, in contrast a rigid skin model or structured secondary and terti-
to statements in many popular hull surface. ary vortices genera-
publications, that enhanced Summing up some aspects of tion on a placoid scale
model with perpen-
mixing does increase shear the current discussion, it must dicular orientation to
stress and drag reduction; it is be stated that the shark skin the surface
exclusively achieved by avoid- models created as technical so- (Lang et al., 2010)
ing flow separation. lutions for ship hulls so far re-