Strain rate dependent mechanical behavior of B. mori silk, A. assama silk, A. pernyi silk and A. ventricosus spider silk

Abstract

In this study, the effect of strain rate on the mechanical behavior of B. mori silk, A. assama silk, A. pernyi silk and A. ventricosus spider silk were systematically investigated. Dynamic tensile tests were conducted for these natural silk fibers to obtain their mechanical properties under five strain rates. Tensile test results indicated that the stiffness, tensile strength, failure strain and rupture energy of A. ventricosus spider silk all increase with increasing strain rates. A. ventricosus spider silk was found to have the highest average Weibull modulus among these silk fibers, showing its excellent reliability. Then, based on Zener model and Weibull statistics, this study theoretically characterized and analyzed the influence of strain rate on their mechanical properties including stress-strain responses, tensile strengths, Weibull parameters, failure strains and rupture energies. Some insights that can be helpful for better understanding their strain rate dependent mechanical behavior were provided.

Keywords

• Strain rate dependent
• Mechanical properties
• Theoretical characterization
• Natural silk fibers