Ionic polymer-metal composite (IPMC) electromechanical and mechanoelectrical phenomena for rectangular and tube-shaped IPMC devices have been examined through simulation and experimental investigation. There is a specific focus on investigating the anion and cation effects in actuation versus sensing. Simulations were performed using COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b. Sample IPMCs were fabricated in lab in the desired geometries by techniques described herein. The sample sizes were roughly 1 mm thick and 20-25 mm in length. Actuation and sensor experiments were performed with the samples and compared to simulation results, which exhibit good agreement for voltage and tip displacement measurements. Fundamental differences in the electromechanical and mechanoelectrical transductions of IPMCs are highlighted in the simulation results. These results display the negligible effect of anion motion in actuation as compared to during sensing. In actuation, the cation motion is dominated by an electric potential flux, and the anions move only slightly in accordance with the deformed polymer membrane. In sensing, the electric potential is induced by the ionic migration in the polymer, and both cation and anion concentration variations are of similar magnitudes.
|