Scientists Create Spider-Man-Inspired Super Sticky Fiber Capable of Lifting Any Object

Scientists have developed a fluid that can transform into a strong, sticky fiber when shot from a device, capable of lifting heavy objects—an innovation inspired by Spider-Man.

Researchers have long sought to create durable fibers that mimic the strength and elasticity of silk produced by spiders, moths, and other insects. However, a team at Tufts University acknowledged the difficulty in reproducing the unique properties of spider silk, such as its flexibility, stiffness, and adhesive strength.

In what they termed an “accidental breakthrough,” published in *Advanced Functional Materials*, study co-author Marco Lo Presti explained the discovery. He recounted how, while cleaning glassware with acetone during an unrelated project focused on making strong adhesives from silk fibroin, he noticed a web-like substance forming at the bottom of the glass.

The team initially attempted to replicate spider silk threads by exposing fibroin solutions to chemicals like acetone or ethanol, which caused the liquid to form a semi-solid gel after several hours. By introducing dopamine into the mix, they found that this process of solidifying silk protein could happen almost instantly, resulting in highly tensile, sticky fibers.

Dopamine, they discovered, sped up the transformation of the silk from liquid to solid by reducing its water content. Moreover, when a thin stream of this silk solution, encased in acetone, was shot through a specialized needle, it became a solid fiber. Once the acetone evaporated in the air, the sticky fiber attached itself to any object it touched.

Adding chitosan—a protein found in the exoskeletons of insects—made the fibers even stronger, increasing their tensile strength by up to 200 times. Their adhesive properties also improved, becoming 18 times more effective when exposed to chemicals like borate buffer.

The researchers found they could adjust the diameter of the fibers by altering the needle size, producing strands as thin as a human hair or up to half a millimeter wide. These fibers were strong enough to lift objects more than 80 times their own weight under various conditions. Tests showed the fibers lifting items such as a steel bolt, a laboratory tube floating on water, a scalpel buried in sand, and a wooden block from a distance of about 12 centimeters.

“This process allows for finely controlled production of instantly formed adhesive hydrogel fibers,” Dr. Lo Presti said. “It’s truly a superhero-inspired material.”