Liu Shilong, Tang Gangqiang, Pan Yifan, An Shunan, Ji Yujun, Wang Yanjie
Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Special Robot Technology, Hohai University, Changzhou Campus, Changzhou 213022, China.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2024 Dec 18;16(50):69818-69828. doi: 10.1021/acsami.4c12202. Epub 2024 Oct 15.
As a type of smart material, flexible stimulus-responsive actuators have become a hot research topic nowadays. However, flexible actuators responding to a single stimulus source are susceptible to external perturbations, which may lead to an unstable function or even failure. Therefore, in this paper, we proposed a bilayer actuator that can be driven by both humidity and light by combining the humidity-sensitive Nafion, carboxylated multiwalled carbon nanotubes (cMWCNT) with excellent photothermal conversion properties, and commercial polyethylene (PE) tape with good humidity insensitivity and thermal expansion. First, the cMWCNT-Nafion film was prepared by a solution casting method and bonded together with PE tape to obtain a bilayer actuator. Then, the effects of the cMWCNT mass fraction and film thickness on the humidity and light response performance of the bilayer actuator were investigated. The optimal ratios of raw materials were obtained for different stimulation sources, respectively. Furthermore, the performance of the bilayer actuator with the optimal ratios was tested; it was verified that the proposed dual-responsive actuator can realize different degrees of bending deformation under different relative humidity (RH) and ultraviolet (UV) light intensity with good stability. Finally, the application potential in multiple scenarios was further verified by applying the prepared cMWCNT-Nafion/PE bilayer actuator to a smart window, crawling robot, and flexible gripper. This paper will provide a meaningful reference for the development and performance optimization of high-performance dual-responsive actuators.
作为一种智能材料，柔性刺激响应致动器如今已成为一个热门研究课题。然而，仅对单一刺激源做出响应的柔性致动器容易受到外部干扰，这可能导致功能不稳定甚至失效。因此，在本文中，我们通过将具有湿度敏感性的Nafion、具备优异光热转换性能的羧基化多壁碳纳米管（cMWCNT）以及具有良好湿度不敏感性和热膨胀性的商用聚乙烯（PE）胶带相结合，提出了一种可由湿度和光共同驱动的双层致动器。首先，通过溶液浇铸法制备cMWCNT-Nafion薄膜，并将其与PE胶带粘结在一起以获得双层致动器。然后，研究了cMWCNT质量分数和薄膜厚度对双层致动器湿度和光响应性能的影响。分别针对不同的刺激源获得了最佳原料配比。此外，对具有最佳配比的双层致动器的性能进行了测试；结果证实，所提出的双响应致动器在不同相对湿度（RH）和紫外（UV）光强度下能够实现不同程度的弯曲变形，且稳定性良好。最后，通过将制备的cMWCNT-Nafion/PE双层致动器应用于智能窗户、爬行机器人和柔性夹具，进一步验证了其在多种场景下的应用潜力。本文将为高性能双响应致动器的开发和性能优化提供有意义的参考。
