Enhancing Soil-Concrete Interface Friction Using a Biomimetic Diamond Snakeskin Texture

This study investigates how biomimetic surface diamond texture modeled after snake scales affects the friction angle at the soil–concrete interface. Concrete disks with diamond-shaped grooves of varying depths were tested using standardized direct shear methods. Results showed that textured surfaces significantly increased the interface friction angle compared to smooth concrete, with greater groove depths generally producing higher values. The strongest correlations were observed when trendlines were forced through the origin, consistent with the expected behavior of cohesionless sand. These findings suggest that bio-inspired surface designs can improve soil–structure interaction and may offer benefits in geotechnical engineering applications.