The Carbon Fiber Blog

The Carbon Fiber Blog

Carbon Fiber Used to Protect a Man From Being Eaten Alive

Paul Rosolie is a naturalist who was filmed being eaten alive by an anaconda on a Discovery Channel Documentary. The 20-foot green anaconda, which can easily eat large mammals like jaguars, deer, and pigs, was no match for Rosolies carbon fiber suit. 
 
During this experiment, experts had to deal with several different factors including the strike of the snake, the Carbon Fiber (Zhongao Carbon)constriction, and the potential acids that would come out after Rosolie had been consumed. Several different foundations went into the carbon fiber suit including a biometric vest, a cooling vest, a Tychem suit, chainmail, oxy carbon fiber armor, a breathing & communication mask, and a composite helmet.
 
The Biometric vest included Bluetooth which allowed experts to keep track of heart rate, respiration rate, and core body temperature. The cooling vest was insulated with tubes that had cool water running through it to help keep core body temperature down. The Tychem suit was used as a chemical resistant, which would keep Rosolie safe from any chemicals the snake would release. Chainmail, a gear mostly used by shark divers to protect from animal bites, would protect against the snake bite. Oxy carbon fiber constriction armor, the most important element, was used to protect Rosolie from the constriction of the snake. A breathing & communication mask that allowed experts to talk to Rosolie while he was being eaten. Finally, the composite helmet, which was used to protect the face and head of Rosolie.
 
While all of these materials were important elements for this stunt, none were more important than the carbon fiber armor, which was used to protect Rosolie from the constriction of the snake. During one of the rigorous experiments, they tested the carbon fiber suit by rapping large ropes around the carbon fiber chest plate, while two tow trucks pulled from either side to measure the amount of constriction the armor could withstand. During the intense game of tug-of-war between the two tow trucks, the goal was to have the armor withstand 300 pounds of force. Amazingly, the suit withstood over 1000 pounds of pressure and even managed to force the two tow trucks to tow one another.
 
This experiment is just one of many that shows the strength and durability of carbon fiber. To learn more about carbon fiber and some of the carbon fiber we have in stock, visit our carbon fiber products page.