Abstract

A variety of artificial spinning methods have been applied to produce regenerated silk fibers; however, how to spin regenerated silk fibers that retain the advantages of natural silks in terms of structural hierarchy and mechanical properties remains challenging. Here, we show a bioinspired approach to spin regenerated silk fibers. First, we develop a nematic silk microfibril solution, highly viscous and stable, by partially dissolving silk fibers into microfibrils. This solution maintains the hierarchical structures in natural silks and serves as spinning dope. It is then spun into regenerated silk fibers by direct extrusion in the air, offering a useful route to generate polymorphic and hierarchical regenerated silk fibers with physical properties beyond natural fiber construction. The materials maintain the structural hierarchy and mechanical properties of natural silks, including a modulus of 11 ± 4 GPa, even higher than natural spider silk. It can further be functionalized with a conductive silk/carbon nanotube coating, responsive to changes in humidity and temperature.

Details

Title
Polymorphic regenerated silk fibers assembled through bioinspired spinning
Author
Ling, Shengjie 1 ; Zhao, Qin 2 ; Li, Chunmei 3 ; Huang, Wenwen 3 ; Kaplan, David L 3 ; Buehler, Markus J 2 

 Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA 
 Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA 
 Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA 
Pages
1-12
Publication year
2017
Publication date
Nov 2017
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
e-ISSN
20411723
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
1962258494
Copyright
© 2017. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.