Continuing their study on the fascinating properties of the deep-sea glass sponge (Euplectella aspergillum), Professors Giacomo Falcucci (University of Rome Tor Vergata, Harvard University), Giorgio Amati (CINECA, Rome), Pierluigi Fanelli (University of Tuscia, Viterbo), Sauro Succi (Italian Institute of Technology, National Research Council of Italy, Harvard University), and Maurizio Porfiri (NYU), published a new collaborative work in Communications in Computational Physics, special issue on Discrete Simulation of Fluid Dynamics.
In this paper, the researchers investigate the environmental stimuli that has led to the evolution of such a complex structure and study the flow of water through the complex sponge skeleton and understand how its microstructure relates to an increase in the permanence of water over time within the body cavity, which is helpful for absorbing nutrients and reproduction.
Read the full paper “Hydrodynamic Performance of Euplectella aspergillum: Simulating Real Life Conditions in the Abyss” here.
Image credit: Giacomo Falcucci et al.