Biomimetic composites with enhanced toughening using silk-inspired triblock proteins and aligned nanocellulose reinforcements.

ABSTRACT: Silk and cellulose are biopolymers that show strong potential as future sustainable materials. They also have complementary properties, suitable for combination in composite materials where cellulose would form the reinforcing component and silk the tough matrix. A major challenge concerns balancing structure and functional properties in the assembly process. We used recombinant proteins with triblock architecture, combining structurally modified spider silk with terminal cellulose affinity modules. Flow alignment of cellulose nanofibrils and triblock protein allowed continuous fiber production. Protein assembly involved phase separation into concentrated coacervates, with subsequent conformational switching from disordered structures into β sheets. This process gave the matrix a tough adh

SUBMITTER: Mohammadi P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6744269 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature