Protein based material inspired by nature could revolutionize armor

🔔The search for next-generation armor materials has regularly led scientists into the realm of nature, where everything from snail shells to sea sponges have inspired some exciting possibilities. Researchers at the University of Kent have followed in these footsteps to developed a protein-based family of synthetic materials that can withstand supersonic impacts and which they see one day finding use in military and space applications.

Like another interesting advance in material science we looked at back in 2016, the team’s creation uses the unique properties of a protein as a starting point. Where that previous example took advantage of a protein’s counter-intuitive compression capabilities, the University of Kent team has drilled into the natural shock-absorbing abilities of a protein called talin, and used it to create a family of hydrogel materials called TSAMs (Talin Shock Absorbing Materials).