edit: I take it back, my memory is failing me. Some intermediate-modulus high-strength PAN based carbon fibers have strengths exceeding most synthetic polymers.

edit: I take it back, my memory is failing me. Some intermediate-modulus high-strength PAN based carbon fibers have strengths exceeding most synthetic polymers. Here is a comparison I put together a few years back for some research on fibers. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3730003/fiber%20strength%20to%20weight%20ratio.pdf https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3730003/fiber%20strength... This is quite surprising as many synthetic polymers (zylon, spectra/dyneema, kevlar) are much stronger than carbon fiber. There is even a competition to make the strongest rope for potential space elevators: http://www.isec.org/sec/index.php/technical-program/strong-tether-comp http://www.isec.org/sec/index.php/technical-program/strong-t...