When thinking about spiders most people shiver
in fear. Spiders are an arachnid- a creature with 8 legs
and two separate body parts [3]. All spiders spin silk.
Some species of spider can produce up to seven different
kinds of silk [3]. These different kinds of silk can be used
for building webs, wrapping prey and protecting eggs.
Spider silk has some unique qualities that make it
interesting to humans. Spider silk is extremely strong.
Strength is measured by the weight a material can bear
and toughness is measured by the amount of energy a
substance can withstand without breaking [5]. Many
universities and companies are testing the strength and
toughness of spider silk and have found that it is stronger
than steel and Kevlar [4].
Spider Silk Engineering is the combination of
studying a spiders silk and its strengths and weaknesses,
as well as attempting to synthesize man-made silk so
humans can use it to improve society. In this section, the
field of spider silk engineering will be discussed in detail
and humans interest in spider silk, its uses and
controversies will be explained.
Man-made Spider Silk from Bolt Threads
undergoing testing on strength and toughness [1].
The first account of humans using spider silk is
from 1710. It was said in folk medicine one could use
spider silk as a dressing for wounds [3]. This trend did
not pick back up till 1855- but silk was not collected from
spiders, but from silkworms [6]. Silkworm populations
were threatened by disease and they were no longer
used as subjects. It was not until the 1970s, when
engineering was more advanced, that people started to
think about our eight- legged friends [6].
Engineering is a field of science that is devoted to
improving what is known as well as making new advances
in new fields. It focuses on design, building, machinery
and structures to help solve old and new problems.
Spider silk engineering is an up and coming field- with
only a few universities and companies specializing in the
production of spider silk. Spider silk comes out of a
spiders spinnerets and starts as a liquid inside of the
spiders body and once it hits the air it solidifies- the
process by which this happens is still unknown.
A spiders spinnerets are where the silk exits
the body. [6]
To most peoples surprise spider silk has many
applications. Going back to the 1700s, spider silk can be
used to repair tendons and muscle [6]. Spider silk is made
up of proteins [3]. Proteins are the building blocks of our
tendons and muscle tissue. By engineering, or designing
our own spider silk we would be able to artificially repair
muscle that is damaged. Who would have thought that
the cobwebs in your house could save your life?
Another use is in the line of police work. Because
of spider silks amazing toughness and ability to take an
impact, engineers are looking to replace Kevlar, which is
what is in bullet proof vests, with spider silk [5]. Spiders
silk has to withstand the impact of an insect flying right
at it as well as not break in the process- this is why the
material is of interest to police officers and scientists.
A third use of spider silk is in the textile industry.
Bolt Threads in California is a start-up company
engineering spider silk to create textiles, rope and cables
[2]. The company is using a fermentation process, like
they use to make beer, to mass produce the silk [2]. The
biggest challenge with making enough silk to form textiles
and rope is that silk is extremely thin and you need
hundreds of individual strands to make a thread [1]. To
build the threads, engineers at Bolt Threads had to invent
a new machine that takes the individual strands of silk
and threads them together.
Machine used at Bolt Threads, based in California, to
thread together strands of synthetic spider silk. [1]
Spiders are not everyones favorite animal, but
they are very beneficial to humans. Their silk can be
used in the medical field as well as in industry to help
better society and make advancements in products that
people use worldwide. With the help of engineering,
people are able to design and build spider silk in a lab
that can then be produced into the multitude of
products mentioned above. Next time you see a spider,
maybe think twice before squishing it under your shoe.
That spider could save your life one day!
1. Alba, D. (2015, June 4). Startup Says Its the First to Make
Synthetic Spider Silk. (Wired) Retrieved February 5, 2017,
from https://www.wired.com/2015/06/bolt-threads-
spider-silk/
2. Bourzac, K. (2015, September 21). Spinning Synthetic
Spider Silk. (MIT) Retrieved February 5, 2017, from
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/541361/spinning-
synthetic-spider-silk/
3. Foelix, R. F. (2011). Biology of Spiders. New York: Oxford
University Press.
4. F., Kawabata, S., Inoue, M., Niwa, M., Fossey, S., & Song,
J. (n.d.). Engineering Properties of Spider Silk.
Philadelphia.
5. Scott, A. (2014). Spider Silk Poised For Commercial Entry.
Chemical and Engineering News, 92(9), 24-27.
6. University of Southern California. (2017). Biomimetics:
Engineering Spider Silk. Illumin, 57(3).