A new material made from spider’s silk is stronger than steel and more elastic than rubber, scientists have claimed, and it will be used for artificial muscles in the future. Spider-silk is stronger than any man-made material, and if it were to be made into body armour, it would be three times stronger than Kevlar, which used in bullet proof vests, which is why scientists decided to use that as a basis. The material in question is known as ‘supercontraction’ and shrinks and expands in response to its environment.
For example, just a small amount of humidity can make it contract and turn, while removing the moisture straightens it out.
Scientists have noted that this works in the same way as a human muscle, and it could one day be used for robotic purposes, according to the research published in the journal Science Advances.
The robots could have multi-purposes, such as being soft to care for the elderly, or having super strength.
Professor Markus Buehler, head of the department of civil and environmental engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said: “It’s a new phenomenon.
“This could be very interesting for the robotics community. It is very precise in how you can control these motions by controlling the humidity.”
Robots fitted with the tissue created from the spider’s silk could be able to move as easily as humans, and the ultimate hope is to use it in a wide-range of applications, from non-invasive surgeries to helping out in care homes.
Prof Anna Tarakanova, formerly of MIT and now at the University of Connecticut, said: “Silk’s unique propensity to undergo super contraction and exhibit a torsional behaviour in response to external triggers such as humidity can be exploited to design responsive silk based materials precisely tuned at the nanoscale.
“Potential applications are diverse – from humidity-driven soft robots and sensors, to smart textiles and green energy generators.”