Mechanistic aspects of the fracture toughness of elk antler bone

Bone is an adaptive material that is designed for different functional requirements; indeed, bones have a variety of properties depending on their role in the body. To understand the mechanical response of bone requires the elucidation of its structure–function relationships. Here, we examine the fracture toughness of compact bone of elk antler, which is an extremely fast-growing primary bone designed for a totally different function than human (secondary) bone. We find that antler in the transverse (breaking) orientation is one of the toughest biological materials known. Its resistance to fracture is achieved during crack growth (extrinsically) by a combination of gross crack deflection/twisting and crack bridging via uncracked “ligaments” in the crack wake, both mechanisms activated by microcracking primarily at lamellar boundaries. We present an assessment of the toughening mechanisms acting in antler as compared to human cortical bone, and identify an enhanced role of inelastic deformation in antler which further contributes to its (intrinsic) toughness.