Innovative materials for a sustainable future

Innovative materials and technologies are essential for a sustainable future. Biosteel® fiber, which is made from synthetic spider silk, has already been on the market since the first quarter of 2019 and is used not only in watch straps and clothing, but also in cars and aircraft. We spoke with Dr. Volker Wagner-Solbach of AMSilk GmbH about what is special about the fiber and what potential he sees for its use. He will be a speaker at our Online Forum "Biopolymers" , which will take place for the seventh time this year.

Dr. Wagner-Solbach, what is synthetic spider silk and how is it produced?

Synthetic silk in our case is natural silk produced without the original organism. So Biosteel® fiber is spider silk produced without the aid of spiders, silkworms or other animals. We have transferred the gene section for the production of spider silk from the spider into bacteria. These bacteria are propagated in large tanks, similar to beer brewing, and then the spider silk is separated from the fermentation broth. The vegan spider silk powder obtained is then used in an industrial wet spinning process to produce the Biosteel® fiber.

What is so innovative about synthetic silk made from spider silk protein?

Synthetic silk made from spider silk proteins is the first natural fiber whose warp is industrially produced by humans. Previously, there were natural fibers such as wool, the chain of which came from sheep. Since the invention of nylon, it has been possible to produce chains chemically from a few simple building blocks, known as monomers, which are always the same. Since then, many polymers have been obtained, which now cause major environmental problems because they are usually poorly biodegradable. Spider silk fibers, on the other hand, are natural, very strong, very beautiful, durable and yet biodegradable. Biosteel® is a natural fiber made of many natural amino acids in complex sequence joined together to form a chain.

What are the possible applications and what potential do you see?

Currently, Biosteel is used in various applications: fibers for luxury goods, performance applications such as footwear, automobiles, airplanes, technical textiles and especially apparel. Currently, a watch strap made of spider silk by Omega is already available for purchase, with many more products to follow soon. The potential is very large, as natural, biodegradable, vegan and at the same time high-performance and beautiful textiles are expected by more and more customers.

Thank you very much for the exciting conversation and see you on November 5, 2020!