A groundbreaking material discovery has brought Spider-Man’s web shooters to life, with scientists unlocking the secrets of a ‘remote adhesive’ that can shoot sticky fibers like the superhero’s wrist-mounted web shooters.
A Material that Mimics Superpowers is Always a Good Thing
Tufts University biotech researcher Marco Lo Presti made an astonishing discovery while investigating how silk and dopamine allow mussels to stick to rocky surfaces. While using acetone to clean the glassware of this silk and dopamine substance, he noticed it was undergoing a transition into a solid format, into a web-looking material, into something that looked like a fiber.
The Accidental Breakthrough
Lo Presti and his colleagues immediately got to work, investigating whether the sticky fibers could be turned into a “remote adhesive.” The result is an astonishingly “Spider Man“-like silk that can be shot not unlike the superhero’s wrist-mounted web shooters. Footage of the team’s experiments shows strands of the material being dripped onto a number of objects from several inches above, forming a solid connection in a matter of seconds and allowing the object to be carried away.
The Science Behind the Silk
Intriguingly, Lo Presti explained that no spider has the ability to “shoot a stream of solution, which turns into a fiber and does the remote capturing of a distant object.” In other words, the discovery appears to be entirely new, despite initially being inspired by nature. The fibers also have an impressive tensile strength, allowing researchers to catch objects up to 30 or 35 centimeters away and lift objects of around 15 to 20 grams.
Scaling Up the Technology
However, scaling up the technology could prove difficult. “Everybody wants to know if we’re going to be able to swing from buildings,” said Tufts engineering professor Fiorenzo Omenetto. While it’s unclear whether this technology will ever allow for human web-slinging, researchers are eager to explore its potential applications in fields such as medicine and logistics.
The Future of Spider-Man-Inspired Technology
While the technology is still in its early stages, it’s clear that Lo Presti’s accidental discovery has opened up new possibilities for materials science. As researchers continue to refine and develop this technology, we may see innovative applications in a variety of fields. For now, it’s exciting to think about what the future might hold for spider-man-inspired tech.
