Mechanically Reinforced Silkworm Silk Fiber by Hot Stretching.

ABSTRACT: Silkworm silk, which is obtained from domesticated Bombyx mori (B. mori), can be produced in a large scale. However, the mechanical properties of silkworm silk are inferior to its counterpart, spider dragline silk. Therefore, researchers are continuously exploring approaches to reinforce silkworm silk. Herein, we report a facile and scalable hot stretching process to reinforce natural silk fibers obtained from silkworm cocoons. Experimental results show that the obtained hot-stretched silk fibers (HSSFs) retain the chemical components of the original silk fibers while being endowed with increased β-sheet nanocrystal content and crystalline orientation, leading to enhanced mechanical properties. Significantly, the average modulus of the HSSFs reaches 21.6 ± 2.8 GPa, whi

SUBMITTER: Lu H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8992573 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature