Not famous for it’s incredible strength, silk has been a staple for high end luxury garments for 100’s of years. Researchers now are disrupting this classic fabric by giving it new levels of strength and toughness.

The method: feeding silkworms graphene or carbon nanotubes through treated leaves containing a solution of 0.2% weight of the mentioned materials. Previous to this new method, researchers had attempted to treat already spun silk with toxic-chemicals in a far more complex and environmentally damaging way.

The researchers even took the silk fibres up to 1,050°C carbonizing the silk in the process making it conduct electricity

So why is this cool, well this unorthodox method creates carbon-enhanced silk that is twice as tough and can withstand 50% higher stress before breaking. The researchers even took the silk fibres up to 1,050°C carbonizing the silk in the process making it conduct electricity, a feat never previously achieved. Researchers explained the applications of the reinforced silk include durable protective fabrics, biodegradable medical implants and eco-friendly wearable electronics.