Large strain actuation in polypyrrole actuators

Patrick A. Anquetil; Derek Rinderknecht; Nathan A. Vandesteeg; John D. Madden; Ian W. Hunter

doi:10.1117/12.540141

27 July 2004 Large strain actuation in polypyrrole actuators

Patrick A. Anquetil, Derek Rinderknecht, Nathan A. Vandesteeg, John D. Madden, Ian W. Hunter

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 5385, Smart Structures and Materials 2004: Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD); (2004) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.540141
Event: Smart Structures and Materials, 2004, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

A typical limitation of polypyrrole based conducting polymer actuators is the low achievable active linear strains (2 % recoverable at 10 MPa, 7 % max) that these active materials exhibit when activated in a common propylene carbonate / tetraethylammonium hexafluorophosphate electrolyte. Mammalian skeletal muscle, on the other hand, exhibits large recoverable linear strains on the order of 20%. Such large linear strains are desirable for applications in life-like robotics, artificial prostheses or medical devices. We report herein the measurement of recoverable linear strains in excess of 14 % at 2.5 MPa (20 % max) for polypyrrole activated in the 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate liquid salt electrolyte. This advancement in conducting polymer actuator technology will impact many engineering fields, where a lightweight, large displacement actuator is needed. Benefits and trade offs of utilizing ionic liquid electrolytes for higher performance polypyrrole actuation are discussed.

Citation Download Citation

Patrick A. Anquetil, Derek Rinderknecht, Nathan A. Vandesteeg, John D. Madden, and Ian W. Hunter "Large strain actuation in polypyrrole actuators", Proc. SPIE 5385, Smart Structures and Materials 2004: Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD), (27 July 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.540141

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