The objective of this project is to design, synthesize, characterize, and model a spider silk like fiber for vibration control. The high damping synthetic fiber will mimic the microstructure of spider silk. In this project, the composition of existing melt-spin polyurethane fiber will be modified by tailoring the hard phase domain and soft phase domain, molecular chain rigidity, molecular weight and distribution, hydrogen bond, and cross-link density. The synthetic fiber will be strengthened and hardened by cold-stretching and by reducing fiber diameter during the melt-spinning process. Once the fiber is fabricated, its chemical, physical, and mechanical properties will be characterized and feed-back will be given to further refine its composition and polymerization, as well as cold-tension, until it is competitive with dragline spider silk. Its vibration damping capability will then be evaluated. Physics based multi-scale modeling of the synthetic fiber under dynamic loading will be developed. The model will link the microstructure of the fiber with its damping properties over a wide range of temperature and frequency. The result will provide guidance for further improvement in fiber design.
If successful, this project will create fundamental knowledge and provide basic understanding of a novel synthetic fiber mimicking dragline spider silk. It may eventually make it possible to manufacture a large amount of synthetic fibers that have mechanical and damping properties comparable to those of spider silks. It is expected that this project will open up new opportunities for application of polymeric fibers in lightweight load-bearing structures. The derived knowledge can also be extended to other materials such as fiber reinforced cement concrete for vibration damping in bridges and buildings. This project will support advanced training for undergraduate and graduate students, including minority students at Southern University, and high school students through hands on laboratory work and Science and Engineering Fair projects.
