Making silk into leather: can be 3D printed and recycled

Source of this article: cnBeta? According to foreign media reports, as a useful material such as leather, "growing" it on the back of cattle is not the most environmentally friendly way to obtain it
.
Now, engineers from Tufts University have used silk to create a new leather-like material that can be molded by 3D printing and can be easily recycled into new products when needed
.
Due to the versatility and durability of leather, it has been widely used for thousands of years, but modern mass production means that it has a considerable environmental footprint
.
Cattle farms occupy large areas of land and emit a lot of water, while animals themselves emit large amounts of methane into the atmosphere
.
In the process of processing these materials, there will be some harmful chemicals
.
? Greener and cleaner leather alternatives are being developed, they are made of mushrooms and the like
.
Now, researchers at Tufts University have shown that silk may become a competitor
.
? Silk and leather seem to be two very distant materials, but the team at Tufts University has developed a new method of processing silk to make it tougher, stronger, and more durable, while maintaining elasticity and flexibility.
Functionality
.
Even better, this process requires only mild chemicals and can be done at room temperature, all of which can reduce the environmental impact of silk
.
? It is understood that scientists first extract ordinary silk fibers from silkworm cocoons
.
These fibers are mixed into a slurry, where they are broken down into their original protein components
.
Then, through the combination of silk fibroin with plasticizers and vegetable gum thickeners, materials that can be used for 3D printing are produced
.
? In order to further strengthen this material, the research team added plasticizers and dyes to chitosan
.
? The team stated that this material has properties similar to ordinary leather
.
It can be folded, perforated, stretched and stitched together to form clothes and accessories usually made of leather
.
The production method of 3D printing can also be adjusted to create patterns and textures to change its function, appearance and/or feel
.
Fiorenzo Omenetto, the corresponding author of the research paper, said: "Our focus is to use natural materials to minimize the use of toxic chemicals while maintaining the properties of the materials to provide alternatives to products that are currently widely used
.
Through the use of silk , Cellulose extracted from textiles and agricultural wastes, chitosan extracted from shellfish wastes, and all the relatively mild chemicals used to bind them, we are moving towards this goal
.
"? To make this This material is more sustainable, and the team said that leather made of silk can be easily recycled
.
Once the product reaches the end of its life, the material can be re-dissolved into silk pulp, and then made into a brand new silk leather product
.
Even if it ends up in a landfill, this material is biodegradable
.
The team stated that their future work will include testing other methods of producing this material and better comparing this material with animal leather
.