Department of Nanoscience and Engineering, Center for Nano Manufacturing, Inje University, Gimhae 50834, Korea.
Department of Industrial Engineering, Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA.
Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Apr 29;23(9):4981. doi: 10.3390/ijms23094981.
To improve the energy efficiency and driving performance of ionic electroactive polymer actuators, we propose inserting insulating layers of 170 nm hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) particles between the ionic polymer membrane and electrodes. In experiments, actuators exhibited better capacitance (4.020 × 10 F), displacement (6.01 mm), and curvature (35.59 m) with such layers than without them. The excellent insulating properties and uniform morphology of the layers reduced the interfacial resistance, and the ion conductivity (0.071 S m) within the ionic polymer improved significantly. Durability was enhanced because the h-BN layer is chemically and thermally stable and efficiently blocks heat diffusion and ion hydrate evaporation during operation. The results demonstrate a close relationship between the capacitance and driving performance of actuators. A gripper prepared from the proposed ionic electroactive polymer actuator can stably hold an object even under strong external vibration and fast or slow movement.
为了提高离子电活性聚合物致动器的能量效率和驱动性能，我们提出在离子聚合物膜和电极之间插入 170nm 厚的六方氮化硼（h-BN）颗粒绝缘层。在实验中，与没有绝缘层的致动器相比，这种致动器具有更好的电容（4.020×10-3F）、位移（6.01mm）和曲率（35.59m）。该层具有优异的绝缘性能和均匀的形态，降低了界面电阻，同时也显著提高了离子聚合物内的离子电导率（0.071S m）。由于 h-BN 层具有化学和热稳定性，并且在运行过程中能有效阻止热量扩散和水合离子蒸发，因此提高了致动器的耐用性。实验结果表明，致动器的电容和驱动性能之间存在密切关系。由所提出的离子电活性聚合物致动器制备的夹具即使在外部强烈振动以及快速或缓慢移动的情况下也能稳定地夹持物体。
