Repository logo
 

Biomimetic Supramolecular Fibers Exhibit Water-Induced Supercontraction.

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Change log

Authors

Wu, Yuchao 
Shah, Darshil U 
Wang, Baoyuan 
Liu, Ji 
Ren, Xiaohe 

Abstract

Spider silk is a fascinating material, combining high strength and elasticity that outperforms most synthetic fibers. Another intriguing feature of spider silk is its ability to "supercontract," shrinking up to 50% when exposed to water. This is likely on account of the entropy-driven recoiling of secondary structured proteins when water penetrates the spider silk. In contrast, humidity-driven contraction in synthetic fibers is difficult to achieve. Here, inspired by the spider silk model, a supercontractile fiber (SCF), which contracts up to 50% of its original length at high humidity, comparable to spider silk, is reported. The fiber exhibits up to 300% uptake of water by volume, confirmed via environmental scanning electron microscopy. Interestingly, the SCF exhibits tunable mechanical properties by varying humidity, which is reflected by the prolonged failure strain and the reversible damping capacity. This smart supramolecular fiber material provides a new opportunity of fabricating biomimetic muscle for diverse applications.

Description

Keywords

biomimetic, supercontraction, supramolecular fibers

Journal Title

Adv Mater

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0935-9648
1521-4095

Volume Title

30

Publisher

Wiley
Sponsorship
Leverhulme Trust (RP2013-SL-008)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/L027151/1)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/F035535/1)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/K503757/1)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/H046593/1)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/L504920/1)
Relationships
Is source of: