The bombardier beetle evolved a delivery system that engineers adapted for pulse-jet engine designs

Evidence

The bombardier beetle (Brachinus and related species) defends itself by mixing two chemical compounds — hydrogen peroxide and hydroquinones — in a specialized reaction chamber near its abdomen. The exothermic chemical reaction produces a boilingpoint liquid that the beetle can spray with directional accuracy at near-100°C. The spray is fired in rapid pulses (500 cycles per second) from an abdominal nozzle that can rotate 270 degrees. The mechanism was studied by engineers for potential applications in military propulsion systems. It was the model for several experimental pulse-jet engine designs in the 1950s. — Jamal Awil, The Whispering Archive, 837

Categorization

• XREF: The 1950s military-engine borrowing echoes my notes on biomimicry in sound/defense fields and the chemistry-versus-mechanism boundary.