{"id":19536,"date":"2025-03-06T21:51:10","date_gmt":"2025-03-06T21:51:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/?p=19536"},"modified":"2025-03-06T21:51:11","modified_gmt":"2025-03-06T21:51:11","slug":"open-source-software-for-soft-material-optimization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/open-source-software-for-soft-material-optimization\/","title":{"rendered":"Open-Source Software for Soft Material Optimization"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-blockquote uagb-block-e7eb3fc3 uagb-blockquote__skin-border uagb-blockquote__stack-img-none\"><blockquote class=\"uagb-blockquote\"><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__content\">A research team at Tufts University has introduced Morpho, a revolutionary open-source software for optimizing soft materials. This breakthrough tool simplifies the complex process of modeling soft and fluidic materials, making advanced material science accessible to a wider audience.<\/div><footer><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__author-wrap uagb-blockquote__author-at-left\"><\/div><\/footer><\/blockquote><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-content-justification-space-between is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-0dfbf163 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><div style=\"font-size:16px;\" class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-post-author\"><div class=\"wp-block-post-author__content\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-author__name\">The University Network<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share uagb-social-share__outer-wrap uagb-social-share__layout-horizontal uagb-block-ee584a31\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-ec619ce7\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"facebook\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M504 256C504 119 393 8 256 8S8 119 8 256c0 123.8 90.69 226.4 209.3 245V327.7h-63V256h63v-54.64c0-62.15 37-96.48 93.67-96.48 27.14 0 55.52 4.84 55.52 4.84v61h-31.28c-30.8 0-40.41 19.12-40.41 38.73V256h68.78l-11 71.69h-57.78V501C413.3 482.4 504 379.8 504 256z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-32d99934\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"twitter\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M389.2 48h70.6L305.6 224.2 487 464H345L233.7 318.6 106.5 464H35.8L200.7 275.5 26.8 48H172.4L272.9 180.9 389.2 48zM364.4 421.8h39.1L151.1 88h-42L364.4 421.8z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-1d136f14\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"linkedin\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M416 32H31.9C14.3 32 0 46.5 0 64.3v383.4C0 465.5 14.3 480 31.9 480H416c17.6 0 32-14.5 32-32.3V64.3c0-17.8-14.4-32.3-32-32.3zM135.4 416H69V202.2h66.5V416zm-33.2-243c-21.3 0-38.5-17.3-38.5-38.5S80.9 96 102.2 96c21.2 0 38.5 17.3 38.5 38.5 0 21.3-17.2 38.5-38.5 38.5zm282.1 243h-66.4V312c0-24.8-.5-56.7-34.5-56.7-34.6 0-39.9 27-39.9 54.9V416h-66.4V202.2h63.7v29.2h.9c8.9-16.8 30.6-34.5 62.9-34.5 67.2 0 79.7 44.3 79.7 101.9V416z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>In a significant leap forward for material science and engineering, a team of researchers at Tufts University led by Tim Atherton, a professor of physics, has unveiled Morpho, an innovative open-source software designed to solve complex shape optimization problems for soft materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cMany things that are interesting in science and engineering are shape optimization problems,\u201d Atherton said in a news release. \u201cThat might mean coming up with the best possible contours for a city to accommodate traffic and pedestrians, or the shape of a riverbed with water flowing over it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Traditionally, designing for rigid materials like metal or concrete has been relatively straightforward due to well-established mathematical models. However, soft materials \u2014 including biological tissues, membranes and even shape-shifting fluids \u2014 pose a unique set of challenges due to their ability to deform under various forces. These challenges are evident in applications such as artificial heart valves and soft robotic materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Atherton, along with James Adler, professor of mathematics, and Chaitanya Joshi, a postdoctoral scholar in physics, developed Morpho to address these complexities. The software, detailed in a study <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s43588-024-00749-7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">published<\/a> in the journal Nature Computational Science, offers a user-friendly, free platform that caters to a broad spectrum of design scenarios.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cTraditional modeling packages are used for geometric optimization of rigid structures, and are not usually designed to solve shape optimization problems for soft materials,\u201d Atherton added. \u201cEngineers typically have to come up with their own mathematical formulations for soft materials, which can be challenging. Morpho provides a set of tools to help anyone conveniently solve these problems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Soft materials exhibit inherently complex behaviors when interacting with their environment. For example, membranes can be influenced by compression, liquid flows, pressure and vibrations, making their final shapes unpredictable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To model these behaviors, Morpho employs finite element analysis, breaking down materials into smaller, manageable shapes and solving equations for each to predict optimal configurations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Beyond soft materials, Morpho\u2019s capabilities extend to solving packing problems and modeling heterogeneous systems that include both hard and soft components. This versatility makes it a valuable tool for a wide range of industries, from pharmaceutical manufacturing to logistics and biomedical engineering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t really need a lot of training on the program to tackle complex problems,\u201d added Atherton. \u201cI\u2019ve seen undergrads within a couple of weeks of learning Morpho use the package to solve research-grade problems, which is amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:9px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/now.tufts.edu\/2025\/03\/04\/now-theres-open-source-software-modeling-soft-materials\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Tufts University<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In a significant leap forward for material science and engineering, a team of researchers at Tufts University led by Tim Atherton, a professor of physics, has unveiled Morpho, an innovative open-source software designed to solve complex shape optimization problems for soft materials. \u201cMany things that are interesting in science and engineering are shape optimization problems,\u201d [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"single-no-separators","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[108],"class_list":["post-19536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tech","tag-tufts-university"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"The University Network","author_link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/author\/funky_junkie\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"In a significant leap forward for material science and engineering, a team of researchers at Tufts University led by Tim Atherton, a professor of physics, has unveiled Morpho, an innovative open-source software designed to solve complex shape optimization problems for soft materials. \u201cMany things that are interesting in science and engineering are shape optimization problems,\u201d&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19536"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19536\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19606,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19536\/revisions\/19606"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}