Super-durable material from spider silk

Spider silk is already stiffer and lighter than steel, but now scientists have figured out how to increase its hardness by three times by adding a small amount of metal.

Photo: wikimedia

This technique can help us create super-hard fibers and high-end materials in the medical field (bones and tendons).

"It also helps us make super-durable work for the surgeries," said Seung-Mo Lee, an expert at the Max Planck Institute for Microstructure (German).

Lee and colleagues found that the addition of zinc, titanium and aluminum to spider silk helped to increase its hardness and ability to thin. The team coated a thin layer of metal outside the spider silk fiber and allowed some metal ions to penetrate the fiber. Once inside, the metal ion interacts with the protein structure of the silk.

Lee said he would try adding some other ingredients, such as Teflon, to see if they helped spider silk harder and harder. Earlier, some studies showed that metallic molecules exist in the hardest parts of the body of several insects. For example, the jaws of grasshoppers and leaf-ants are rich in zinc. This metal makes the jaw hard and tough.

Scientists have long been interested in spider silk, but it's not always easy to produce them on a large scale, as spiders tend to eat meat when kept in captivity. Consequently, many material experts have sought to make silk without spiders by imitating their silkworm techniques.