Learning from Nature: Bio-Inspired Designs and Strategies for Efficient on-Earth and off-Earth Ventilation Systems

Efficient ventilation systems are crucial for maintaining optimal air quality in indoor and enclosed environments, both on and off Earth, such as buildings, space habitats, international space station crew quarters, tunnels, underground mines, and other structures. However, traditional ventilation systems face challenges, such as uneven air distribution, energy inefficiency, noise, and limited adaptability to dynamic environmental conditions. Meanwhile, many organisms in nature are capable of constructing structures that can facilitate efficient air exchange and heat regulation, such as ant nests, termite mounds and prairie dog burrows. This study explores, analyzes, and summarizes the mechanisms, structures, and strategies found in nature that can inspire the design of efficient and effective ventilation systems. To highlight the practical implications of such designs, this paper reviews the progress of bio-inspired ventilation research, with a focus on air regulation, component optimization, and environmentally adaptive strategies. A bibliometric analysis and research trend are presented to illustrate the key developments in this field for over the past 25 years. The potential of integrating the bio-inspired strategies into ventilation systems, particularly with the focus on the applications to the off-Earth habitats and underground mines, is discussed. This study presents comprehensive insight into developing bio-inspired ventilation systems, thus paving the way for achieving innovative and more efficient design solutions.