Fabrication of a novel biomaterial with enhanced mechanical and conducting properties

Abstract

5Conducting polymers combine the advantages of metal conductivity with ease in processing and biocompatibility; making them extremely versatile for biosensor and tissue engineering applications. However, the inherent brittle property of conducting polymers limits their direct use in such applications which generally warrant soft and flexible material responses. Addition of fillers increases the material compliance, but is achieved at the cost of reduced electrical conductivity. To retain suitable conductivity 10 without compromising the mechanical properties, we fabricate an electroactive blend (dPEDOT) using low grade PEDOT:PSS as the base conducting polymer with polyvinyl alcohol and glycerol as dopants. Bulk dPEDOT films show a thermally stable response till 110 ºC with over seven fold increase in room temperature conductivity as compared to 0.002 Scm -1 for pristine PEDOT:PSS. We characterized the nonlinear stress-strain response of dPEDOT, well described using a Mooney-Rivlin hyperelastic model, 15 with ductility of ~five times its original length and report elastomer-like moduli. Dynamic mechanical analysis shows constant storage moduli over a large range of frequencies with corresponding linear increase in tan (δ) values. We relate the enhanced performance of dPEDOT with the underlying structural constituents using FTIR and AFM microscopy. These data demonstrate specific interactions between individual components of dPEDOT, their effect on surface topography and material properties. Finally, 20 we show biocompatibility of dPEDOT using fibroblasts that have comparable cell morphologies and viability as control; making it attractive as a biomaterial. 65 Hookean (NH) form of hyperelastic constitutive model, given by = ( 1 2 + 2 2 + 3 2 − 3) where ; = 1: 3 are stretches in the principal directions respectively. These experimental data

Advances and Applications of Metal‐Organic Frameworks (MOFs) in Emerging Technologies: A Comprehensive Review

“…[ 51 ] As examples of the utility of MOFs toward TENG technology, a family of zeolitic imidazole frameworks, HKUST‐1, etc., have elegantly been highlighted. [ 52–54 ] From the literature analysis, it can be understood that depending on the functional group, MOFs displayed positive or negative triboelectric effects. For instance, fluorine‐functionalized MOFs exhibited a high tribonegative nature due to the enhanced charge transport capability.…”

“…Multiple works have reported the application of MOF in high‐performance TENG. [ 53,56,195–198 ] For instance, Khandelwal et al. first reported the use of zeolitic imidazole framework (ZIF) MOF‐based TENG for self‐powering systems and sensor applications ( Figure a).…”

Rapid microwave assisted synthesis and characterisation of a semiconducting polymer with pKa tuneable degradation properties

“…By coupling thiophene heterocycles with hydrolytically sensitive azomethine linkers, it is possible to create a conducting co-polymer containing an on-demand, degradable constituent that maintains the conjugated structure and does not compromise the material's bulk conductivity. Thiophene oligomers are convenient building blocks for the preparation of functional electroactive polymers and materials derived from thiophene have shown good in vitro compatibility [23,24,25,26]. Our synthetic strategy included the use of rapid microwave assisted synthesis (MWS), as previous studies have found the EAPs products of microwave assisted synthesis have greater molecular weight and conductivity values [27,28].…”