In this paper, a kind of green triboelectric nano-generator based on natural degradable cellulose is proposed. Different kinds of regenerated cellulose composite layers are prepared by a blending doping method, and then assembled with poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) thin films to form tribioelectric nanogenerator (TENG). The results show that the open circuit output voltage and the short circuit output current using a pure cellulose membrane is 7.925 V and 1.095 μA. After adding a certain amount of polyamide (PA6)/polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)/barium titanate (BaTiO3), the open circuit output voltage peak and the peak short circuit output current increases by 254.43% (to 20.155 V) and 548.04% (to 6.001 μA). The surface morphology, elemental composition and functional group of different cellulose layers are characterized by Scanning Electronic Microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and tested by the electrochemical analyze. Moreover, after multiple assembly and rectification processing, the electrical output performance shows that the peak value of open-circuit output voltage and the peak value of short circuit output current increases by 132.06% and 116.13%. Within 500 s of the charge-discharge test, the single peak charge reached 3.114 V, and the two peak charges reached 3.840 V. The results demonstrate that the nano-generator based on cellulose showed good stability and reliability, and the application and development of natural biomaterials represented by cellulose are greatly promoted in miniature electronic sensing area.

The design of smart full-hydrogel actuators constructed with natural carbohydrate polymers applied in biomedical and tissue engineering is very important but challenging. Herein, inspired by the efficient transportation of nerve impulses from human muscle, a very simple and natural enhancement strategy was proposed for the preparation of high-efficiency ion transportation channels and high-performance cellulose-all-hydrogel electroactive human-like muscles. Simulating the mechanisms that nerve excitation in human muscle are transmitted through, e.g., releasing ions into efficient channels, co-doped conductive nanoparticles of manganese dioxide (MnO2)/polyaniline/multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs)/reduced graphene oxide (r-GOx) are applied to construct ionic electrolyte membrane (IEM) with superconductive ion channels based on a natural cellulose polymer as a skeleton template, and the obtained product demonstrated outstanding ion transportation efficiency, mechanical properties and electrochemical properties. Bioinspired artificial muscles prepared by IEM exhibit excellent actuation performance including superfast response speed, deflection displacement (16.284 mm), and output force (4.153 mN). These advantages are largely attributed to the superconductive ion channels formed by the codoping of conductive nanoparticles, and this anisotropic feature also contributes to the increase in porosity and specific surface area within the IEM. This study reveals that the bioinspired idea of developing efficient ion transportation channels provides an innovative inspiration for accelerating the actuation performance of artificial muscles.

No abstract

IPMC is a new type of polymer material that will act violently to the stimulation of electrical signals. IPMC has changed the traditional mechanical driving mode. However, the development of IPMC is limited by factors like manufacture cost. In order to reduce the manufacture cost of IPMC, improve the output displacement and output force of IPMC, and make IPMC closer to real life, in this paper, we use carbon nanotubes to modify the ion exchange membrane of IPMC, and PDDA to modify carbon nanotubes and graphene. A graphite plated electrode and a carbon nanotube electrode were coated on a platinum plated IPMC. The common modified Pt-IPMC, carbon nanotubes modified Pt-IPMC, carbon nanotubes modified GS-IPMC, and carbon nanotubes modified CNT-IPMC were prepared. Through the experiment, it is found that the maximum output displacement of GS-IPMC modified by carbon nanotubes is 4.9 mm, and the maximum output force is 39 mN. The output displacement of ordinary Pt IPMC is 3.18 mm and the maximum output force is 31 mN. The maximum displacement and output force of GS-IPMC modified by CNTs are higher than those of Pt IPMC, which is more suitable for research and application.

With the development of bionics and marine science, a new artificial muscle material, IPMC (ion-exchange polymer metal composite), has attracted significant attention. However, the performance issues, as well as problems associated with the preparation of IPMC, have limited its development. In this study, we use the freeze-drying technique, successfully creating a new type of enhanced carbon nanotube IPMC material. Moreover, we also use the method of cyclic voltammetry, ac impedance, and the constant current charge and discharge method to analyze and evaluate the multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)-reinforced IPMC produced by freeze-drying technology. Freeze-dried IPMC has a higher moisture content, which is 1.58 times higher than that of ordinary IPMC. The pore and multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) in the ion exchange membrane are distributed more homogeneously. The technology prepared by IPMC has superior electrical performance. Under a 2 v scanning interval and a scanning speed of 50 mV/s, its specific capacitance can reach 247.5335 mF/cm−2, which is 24 times that of normal IPMC. Under the same conditions, its conductivity can reach 0.29391 mS/cm, far higher than that of ordinary IPMC. Furthermore, the preparation process is also safer. This method provides a new strategy for the future preparation and usage of IPMC.