Synbiobeta ran an article by Gabrielle David on the world of silk. And how we learn to master the art of producing this wonderful material by a natural process, much like the original one. Not primarily by silkworms but by spiders. Spider silk, a story of sustainable innovation and ecological harmony.
Imitating nature
We call biomimicry the process by which we make man-made silk – imitation of nature. We more or less copy the intricate processes by which nature arrives at silk. An environmentally friendly technique (biomimicry) also used in many other instances. Biomimicry learns from the billions of years in which nature arrived at her present goal.
Here, we try to imitate the humble spider. A creature with many valuable characteristics. The most remarkable of these is that they can produce webs, made from a material with almost the same properties as silk. But the production of a cloth from spider silk isn’t easy. In 2009, a team of eighty-two people produced a textile, 11 by 4 foot, that took the work of a million spiders over four years. It is the largest known piece of spider silk cloth to date. But we have to overcome formidable barriers in order to arrive there. Firstly, most spiders are antisocial. They tend to cannibalize each other. And the amount of spiders one needs to produce enough silk thread is formidable.
Spider silk in modern innovation
But scientific ingenuity has come to the rescue. Nowadays, we can use recombinant DNA technology for the purpose. AMSilk, a German company founded in 2008, uses recombinant bacteria to produce spider silk proteins. These can then be spun into useable fibers. ‘We can now finally copy and use a very powerful and versatile material that nature has developed over millions of years,’ says Isabel Rosenberger, Senior Manager Marketing & Communications at AMSilk.
Spider silk is a material with unique properties. It is very sustainable. It doesn’t leave microplastics behind. Being a protein, it is inherently biodegradable. And it is very versatile. It is used in apparel, automotive interiors, medical applications, and household products. It can even be wet-spun into AMSilks proprietary Biosteel® and ultrafine fibres, to be processed into fabric using standard textile manufacturing equipment. Companies like Adidas and Airbus already cooperate with AMSilk. The next step is that the material is going to be industrially produced, through a recent partnership with 21st.BIO.
Weaving silk
Another company active in the field of silk proteins is Spintex, a spin-out from the Oxford Silk Group at Oxford University. It focuses on refining the spinning process. In nature, spiders pass soluble silk proteins through their silk-spinning organs (spinnerets); while doing so, they extract excess water and apply shear forces to produce solid threads. Mimicking this process is essential in the production of synthetic spider silk. The group copies the natural process as closely as possible.
Spintex foresees that we will use spider silk for many products. It is both energy-efficient and biodegradable. A solution for, for instance, the fashion industry. At the moment, this is responsible for around 10% of global carbon dioxide emissions. Mankind produces around 100 billion new garments every year, 60% of which are synthetic. Moreover, they also release an estimated 35% of the microplastic pollution in the world’s oceans; and according to the EPA, they contribute to the majority of waste in landfills.
Problems
But natural fibers have their own drawbacks. Yes, they live long and will finally degrade in the environment. They don’t shed any microplastics. But at the moment, it takes a lot of energy to produce them.
Nevertheless, spider silk could very much be a solution for the environmental problems of the fashion industry. One product, developed by Seevix, is composed of 100% protein. It is biodegradable and eco-friendly. It decomposes into proteins, which can then be used, for example, as fertilizer. Seevix foresees many applications, including aerospace, automotive, textiles, defense, packaging, and construction.
Silkworms
And then, there is Kraig Biocraft Laboratories. They use silkworms. These have already mastered the art of spinning silk; and the art of sericulture (the cultivation of silkworms to farm silk) has been practiced for more than 5000 years. Some object to using these animals for producing silk. But this might be turned into an advantage: Kraig Biocraft Laboratories develop the process of eating the worms – the ‘proteins of the future’. Then, silk would more or less become a byproduct. They foresee a breakthrough in 2025.
But what about spider silk? In spite of innovations that have taken place in this field, many companies have either dropped out or completely eliminated spiders from their marketing. Maybe because of the public image of spider silk. Although spiders did produce sustainable, strong, and flexible fabrics. Materials that can be used in fashion, medicine, and defense. With a wonderful architecture, that human beings could never envision.
Biomimicry
We learn how to copy nature in a fruitful way. Biomimicry, the art of copying natural processes to our benefit, is the key. The natural world has solved many problems that we are still struggling with. We can see that nature has solved a problem, although often we have not yet discovered how it did this. Spider silk production is just one of the techniques researched. With persistence we will try to unravel its secrets. Discovering solutions developed by the natural world that we can put to use ourselves.
Interesting? Then also read:
Nature as our teacher!
Energy saving materials inspired by lizard skins and bark bugs
Daan Bruggink: building naturally with ORGA