New high-performance electroelastomer based on interpenetrating polymer networks

Soon Mok Ha; Wei Yuan; Qibing Pei; Ron Pelrine; Scott Stanford

doi:10.1117/12.657684

17 March 2006 New high-performance electroelastomer based on interpenetrating polymer networks

Soon Mok Ha, Wei Yuan, Qibing Pei, Ron Pelrine, Scott Stanford

Proceedings Volume 6168, Smart Structures and Materials 2006: Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD); 616808 (2006) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.657684
Event: SPIE Smart Structures and Materials + Nondestructive Evaluation and Health Monitoring, 2006, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

This paper describes new electroelastomer films that exhibit high actuation performance at zero to minimal mechanical prestrain. Prestrain is generally required for electroelastomers, also known as dielectric elastomers, such as the VHB 4910 acrylic elastomer, to obtain high electromechanical strain and high elastic energy density. However, the prestrain can cause several serious problems, including the use of a prestrain-supporting structure, a large performance gap between the active materials and packaged actuators, instability at interfaces between the elastomer and prestrain-supporting structure, and stress relaxation. We have introduced a polymerizable and closslinkable liquid additive into highly prestrained acrylic films and subsequently cured the additive to form the second elastomeric network. In the as-obtained Interpenetrating Polymer Networks (IPN), the additive network can effectively support the prestrain of the acrylic films and consequently eliminate the external prestrain- supporting structure. The IPN composite films without external prestrain exhibit electrically-induced strains up to 233% in area, comparable to the VHB 4910 films under high prestrain.

Citation Download Citation

Soon Mok Ha, Wei Yuan, Qibing Pei, Ron Pelrine, and Scott Stanford "New high-performance electroelastomer based on interpenetrating polymer networks", Proc. SPIE 6168, Smart Structures and Materials 2006: Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD), 616808 (17 March 2006); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.657684

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