Linear and bending actuation of bucky gel

Maurizio Biso; Alberto Ansaldo; Veronica Vintera; Davide Ricci

doi:10.1117/12.878464

28 March 2011 Linear and bending actuation of bucky gel

Maurizio Biso, Alberto Ansaldo, Veronica Vintera, Davide Ricci

Proceedings Volume 7976, Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD) 2011; 79762E (2011) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.878464
Event: SPIE Smart Structures and Materials + Nondestructive Evaluation and Health Monitoring, 2011, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

In 2003 Takuzo Aida and coworkers reported that single-walled carbon nanotubes (SW-CNTs), when ground with imidazolium based ionic liquids (ILs), create a physical gel, named "bucky gel"¹. This gel was used to prepare bimorph electrochemical actuators using a polymer-supported internal IL electrolyte layer². These actuators can operate in air at low voltage showing improved frequency response and strain. Usual bucky gel actuators rely on a bimorph configuration where the electrodes are used alternatively as cathode and anode thus producing a bending motion. This kind of motion is limiting the possible applications, especially when, like in artificial muscles, linear strain and motion are required. We present a new design for bucky gel actuators capable of both linear and bending motion that uses a three electrode configuration with two active electrodes and a third passive one, made from a metal spring (serpentine shaped), acting as counter plate. We have built such a device and report here its linear and bending actuation performance. In these preliminary experiments we have obtained a linear strain of 0.6% and a bending strain difference between two bucky gel electrodes of 0.25%.

Citation Download Citation

Maurizio Biso, Alberto Ansaldo, Veronica Vintera, and Davide Ricci "Linear and bending actuation of bucky gel", Proc. SPIE 7976, Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD) 2011, 79762E (28 March 2011); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.878464

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