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Biomaterials

Periodic Graphics

Periodic graphics: The chemistry of spiderwebs

Chemical educator and Compound Interest blogger Andy Brunning explains the chemistry that makes spider silk strong and elastic.

by Andy Brunning
October 10, 2017 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 95, Issue 41
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Most Popular in Materials

To download a pdf of this article, visit cenm.ag/spiderweb.

References used to create this graphic:

Spider silk is a wonder of nature but it’s not stronger than steel

Spider silk

The elaborate structure of spider silk

Bioinspired supramolecular fibers drawn from a multiphase self-assembled hydrogel

Synthetic biology and the rise of the ‘spider-goats’

The structure and properties of spider silk

A collaboration between C&EN and Andy Brunning, author of the popular graphics blog Compound Interest

To see more of Brunning’s work, go to compoundchem.com. To see all of C&EN’s Periodic Graphics, visit http://cenm.ag/periodicgraphics.

Chemical & Engineering News
ISSN 0009-2347
Copyright © 2025 American Chemical Society

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