Silk is one of 32 materials in this atlas, grouped under textiles: history, structure, measured properties, process routes, uses, safety and market — not a product catalogue.
Scores compare Silk with the rest of the atlas on strength, heat, fire behaviour, insulation, workability and circularity. They are editorial, not certificates.
Seven chapters follow. Fire and insulation claims name test families (Euroclass, ASTM E84, ISO 5660, KS F) rather than inventing a single safety number.
Deep introduction
Deep dive: Silk
Silk (fibroin + sericin) is a family of grades whose density ~1.34 g/cm³, heat band degrades; no thermoplastic melt, and fire letter combustible protein.
What “the material” actually is
Silk is sold as grades, not as a single substance. Chemistry fibroin + sericin, density ~1.34 g/cm³, heat band degrades; no thermoplastic melt.
This atlas treats Silk as a system: mill route, coatings, tests and the cavity it sits in.
Heat, fire and insulation
Conductivity note: low. Insulation score 34/100 is relative to 32 entries — metals lose, VIPs and aerogels win.
Fire letter in editorial use: combustible protein. Do not equate A1 with “safe in a blaze” or E with “illegal”. Assemblies decide.
How it is made and used
Origin: China Neolithic / Silk Road, China. The process chapter follows feedstock → conversion → forming → finish → install.
Uses span buildings to defence / safety. Pairings matter: nylon.
Market and circularity
Producers below are landmarks, not an endorsement ranking. Prices are bands, not live quotes.
Circularity mark 50/100. Ask which scrap, which certificate, which year.
Related atlas
Around Silk
Related atlas entries, a short glossary, and three threads that keep Silk honest.
See also
🪢NylonThe filament that stole stockings and chutes.
Decision walkthrough on Silk: fire 28, insulation 34, and one fact already on file — not a code stamp.
Read the fire-performance mark — Fire on this hub is 28/100 — teaching comparison among atlas materials.
Read the insulation mark — Insulation is 34/100 — heat-flow story, not the same question as flame.
Sit one published fact beside them — Quick fact on file: Insect: Bombyx mori.
Sustainability is not a fire skip — A high sustainability mark does not replace fire protection in a real assembly.
Not a building-code rating — Named tests, thickness and build-up still decide compliance — this page is literacy only.
On Silk, fire 28 and insulation 34 answer different jobs; Insect: Bombyx mori grounds one real detail.
Editorial atlas marks. Not a code certificate or product approval.
Thermal mark or safety fact first?
Second lab decision on Silk: heat-resistance 30 beside published thermal fact Conductivity — literacy, not a code stamp.
Read the heat-resistance mark — Heat resistance on this hub is 30/100 — a thermal story, different from the fire/insulation pair.
Sit one thermal fact beside it — Properties chapter lists Conductivity among published thermal rows.
Heat resistance is not a fire skip — A high thermal mark does not replace named fire tests in a real assembly.
Still not a building-code rating — Thickness, build-up and named tests decide compliance — this page teaches axes only.
On Silk, heat 30 and Conductivity are a second thermal/safety reading after fire vs insulation.
Editorial atlas marks. Not a code certificate or product approval.
Heat line to keep
A decision from printed marks. Not a building permit.
Frequently asked questions
Is Silk non-combustible?
Declared reaction class in this atlas: combustible protein. Assemblies still need resistance tests.
Does Silk insulate?
Thermal mark 34/100 versus the atlas. Conductivity note: low.
What is the density band?
~1.34 g/cm³
How is it made?
Origin story: China Neolithic / Silk Road (China).
Can it be recycled?
Circularity mark 50/100 — editorial, route-specific.
Typical melting or failure heat?
degrades; no thermoplastic melt
What should it be paired with?
nylon: The filament that stole stockings and chutes.
Where is it specified?
Buildings, transport, energy and consumer goods — see the uses chapter.
Is the fire-performance score a building-code rating?
No. It is an editorial 0–100 teaching mark among materials in this atlas. A real wall or garment needs a named product test, thickness and assembly. This page is not a lab stamp.
When should I read insulation instead of fire?
Use the insulation pick when the question is heat flow — lining, loft, or a cold-bridge — and the fire pick when the question is how the same material behaves in flame. Both numbers already sit on this hub; they answer different jobs.
Does a high sustainability score mean I can skip fire protection?
No. Sustainability here is a relative atlas mark (growth, reuse, embodied story). Bamboo and timber can still char like wood. Fire protection stays a separate specification.
Why is bamboo missing in some languages?
A language URL is published only when the seven chapters are real prose in that language. Bamboo exists in English, Korean, Japanese, Chinese and Spanish. French, German, Portuguese and Russian stay withheld — earlier machine drafts leaked English, so those URLs are not opened.
Icons
Suzhou weaving
China · historic
Suzhou weaving is a reference point in the public image of Silk.
Lyon canuts
France · 19th c.
Lyon canuts is a reference point in the public image of Silk.
Kimono silk
Japan · historic
Kimono silk is a reference point in the public image of Silk.
Thai mudmee
Thailand · historic
Thai mudmee is a reference point in the public image of Silk.
Surgical silk
Global · 19th c.–
Surgical silk is a reference point in the public image of Silk.
Parachute canopy
Allied · WWII
Parachute canopy is a reference point in the public image of Silk.
Wild tussah
India / China · historic
Wild tussah is a reference point in the public image of Silk.
Hermès scarf lore
France · 20th c.
Hermès scarf lore is a reference point in the public image of Silk.
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Similar materials
Closest neighbours on the six atlas axes — strength, heat, fire, insulation, workability and circularity.
