Constructal theory of design in engineering and nature

This is a brief introduction to an engineering theory on the origin and generation of geometric form in all flow systems: the animate, the in animate and the engineered. The theory is named constructal, and is based on the thought that it is natural for cur rents to construct for them selves in time paths of greater flow access. It is shown that this process of flow path optimization can be reasoned on the basis of principle: the maximization of global performance subject to finite-size constraints. One example is the generation of tree-shaped flow pat terns, as paths of least resistance between one point (source, sink) and an infinity of points (area, volume), as in the circulatory, respiratory and nervous systems. Another is the generation of regular spacing's in heat generating volumes, such as swarms of honey - bees. The optimized tree-flow geometries ac count for allometric laws, e. g., the relation ship between the total tube contact area and the body size, the proportionality between metabolic rate and body size raised to the power 3/4, the proportionality between breathing and heart beating times and body size raised to the power 1/4, and the proportionality between the cruising speed of flying bodies (in sects, birds, air planes) and body mass raised to the power 1/6. The optimized flow structures constitute robust designs, and robustness improves as the complexity of the system increases. Flow architectures that are more efficient look more natural.

Duke Scholars

Author Adrian Bejan Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materia ...