Shape Retention in Polyaniline Artificial Muscles

Abstract

Behaviors of polyaniline artificial muscle under high tensile loads have been studied. The artificial muscle based on the electrochemomechanical deformation exhibits a large creep under high tensile loads. However, the creep is recovered by the removal of tensile loads and several electrochemical cycles. The facts indicate that the creep is due to the one dimensional anisotropic deformation. The anisotropic deformation is retained by the ionic crosslink at the oxidized state, and released by the cycling under load free.

Conducting Polymers

“…This is named as electrochemical (EC)-creeping and a few studies [18,24] are reported. The creeping due to (1) and (2) is the permanent deformation and that by (3) is recovered by removing the tensile load and EC cycles [14]. As shown in (Fig.…”

“…Oxidized state is stiff compared with the reduced state, because of ionic crosslink at the polaron site with the presence of anion as shown in the right hand side of Fig. 7.2 and also delocalization of π-electron [14]. By the electrochemical reduction, the conducting polymers undergo two routes depending on the size of anions involved in polymerization process as shown in Fig.…”

“…7.2 for two modes of (a) anion drive and (b) cation drive actuations [13,14]. Usually, conducting polymers are synthesized by either chemical or electrochemical oxidative polymerization of monomers; hence, the as-grown form is oxidized.…”

“…7.3 [9,13,14]. The conducting polymer films with the approximate dimension of length of 10 mm, width of 2 mm and thickness of 10 μm was hung with a wire connected to working electrode in a glass cell with a pinhole at the bottom.…”

“…In soft actuators the creeping is literally serious issues for the precise positioning [14,18,24]. Creeping results from (1) slipping of polymer chains, (2) breaking and yielding of chains and (3) conformation change of polymer alignment.…”