US Army tests armor armor with dragon armor with better bullet resistance than Kevlar

Silk carries the strong properties of spider silk, but is easy to produce like silk.

The US military has been using Kevlar fiber armor for many decades, however, a new technology with a series of more outstanding advantages could completely replace the type of shirt that has been in existence for more than 50 years. this.

Traditional Kevlar bulletproof vest.

The Michigan-based US company, specializing in biotechnology called Kraig Biocraft, conducted genetic engineering on silkworms to produce a material with spider-like texture. Last month, they signed a contract with the US military to develop a silk called Dragon Silk (roughly translated as Silk Dragon) for the purpose of making bulletproof vests.

Spider silk is one of the most sustainable natural fibers, but it is difficult to extract large quantities because this animal lives in territorial and cannibalistic forms. That's why it is impossible to build spider farms that bring economic efficiency. In order to find an alternative, Kraig Biocraft transplanted spider silk gene into silkworms. The result is a mixed silk with the characteristics of spider silk, and is easy to produce like silk.

"Silk dragon" is easy to produce like silk.

The armor made of "dragon" is both light weight and has extremely high bearing capacity. This silk is compatible with human skin, which means it will not cause itching and can be worn directly on the body. Kraig Biocraft believes that their bulletproof vests will feel more comfortable than traditional armor.

"After many years of investing, researching and developing this breakthrough technology, we are honored to see them brought into use by the US Army , " said Jon Rice, COO of Kraig Biocarft.

This silk is compatible with human skin.

"For me personally, and also for this company, having the opportunity to contribute to protecting the brave people, hard to serve the country is a great honor."

"Dragon silk is highly resistant to stress and has very high elasticity, making it one of the most durable fibers known to man. This is the ideal material for many different applications , " Rice said. next.

Only silk thread is much thinner than spider silk.

In the field of surgery, some types of sutures are made from biodegradable silk yarn. But dragon silk not only brings high durability, but also silk thread is much thinner. This is extremely useful when performing surgeries in some sensitive areas such as eyes and brain.

The US Military and Personal Protection Office (PM-SPIE) decided to sponsor $ 100,000 for Kraig Biocraft to test dragons as bulletproof vests. The company will build several models with different structural and thickness techniques to evaluate the ability of dragons. If the results are positive, the US military intends to increase its funding to one million dollars.

The main advantage of dragon silk compared to traditional Kevlar yarn is flexibility.

The main advantage of dragon silk compared to traditional Kevlar yarn is flexibility. Kevlar fiber is slightly more resistant to dragon thread. The durability of Kevlar is 3 gigapascal (GPa), while the dragon's thread is only 2 GPa. However, while Kevlar is less flexible with 3% elasticity, this figure in dragon silk is up to 30-40%.

If successful, the new armor of Kraig Biocraft will become an important tool to ensure life for the frontline.