Table 1.

Mechanical properties of natural and synthetic fibers (taken from refs. ³⁴ and ⁴⁷)

Material	Density [g cm−3]	Strength [Gpa]	Elasticity [%]	Toughness [MJ m−3]
MA silk*	1.3	1.1	27	180
Flag silk*	1.3	0.5	270	150
Insect silk#	1.3	0.6	18	70
Nylon 6.6	1.1	0.95	18	80
Kevlar 49	1.4	3.6	2.7	50
Carbon fiber	1.8	4	1.3	25
Steel	7.8	1.5	0.8	6

^*European garden spider Araneus diadematus.

^#Silkworm Bombyx mori.