Article Summary

Spider Silk with Carbon Nano-tubes

A scientist, by the name of Eden Steven, discovered an invention that is effective for our use and environmentally safe when he tested spider silk combined with carbon nano-tubes. Carbon nano-tubes are small pieces of carbon atoms that are folded into a tube. Scientists found that these carbon nano-tubes have a high electrical and heat conductivity. With these carbon nano-tubes and another item, these items will create a tool that will be a revolutionary in finding safe human resources.

In order to find this eco-friendly resource, Steven questioned and performed an experiment. This experiment involved combining spider silk with carbon nano-tubes. These two items do not stick together, so the scientist used water to adhere the two items together.  He tested whether this high-performance material would conduct electricity when bent, and it turns out that it is good for transmitting electricity.

This discovery is important because spider silk with carbon nano-tubes can be used for a multitude of purposes like a humidity sensor, a strain sensor, an electrical wire, and even a device that acts like an artificial muscle. This is friendly for the environment because it can decrease our use of toxic elements and non-biodegradable plastics for our daily activities. 

This is an image of the spider-silk based carbon nano tubes that Dr. Steven tested on.
Link: http://gadgets.ndtv.com/others/news/spider-silk-based-carbon-nanotubes-pave-way-for-exciting-new-applications-419352