MIT
New material is twice as stiff as natural silk and can be used to create more complex structures such as meshes and latticesMITArtificial silk has never been able to match the strength of the natural fiber, but engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Tufts University, USA, have found a way to produce a modified variety of silk that is twice as stiff as natural silk and can be used to create more complex structures, such as meshes and lattices (Nature Communications, November 9). The secret of the chemical process is to partially break down the molecular structure of the silk, and then reconstitute the material. This way, the cocoons built by the silkworms are dissolved to the point at which their molecular structure reaches an intermediate form composed of microfibrils, which makes the thread stronger.
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