Study of the Influence of the Hydration Level on the Electromechanical Behavior of Nafion Based Ionomeric Polymer-metal Composites Actuators

Author(s)

Hirano, Laos Alexandre ^[1] ; Acerbi, Lenin Wagner ^{[1, 2]} ; Kikuchi, Kunitomo ^[3] ; Tsuchitani, Shigeki ^[3] ; Scuracchio, Carlos Henrique ^[4]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Fed Alfenas UNIFAL, Inst Ciencia Tecnol, BR-37715400 Pocos De Caldas, MG - Brazil

^[2] PET Ciencias, Programa Educ Tutorial, BR-37715400 Pocos De Caldas, MG - Brazil

^[3] Wakayama Univ, Micro Engn Lab, Wakayama 6408510 - Japan

^[4] Univ Fed Sao Carlos, Dept Engn Mat, BR-1356590 Sao Carlos, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: MATERIALS RESEARCH-IBERO-AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MATERIALS; v. 18, n. 2, p. 154-158, DEC 2015.
• Web of Science Citations: 1

Abstract

The ionomeric electroactive polymers-metal composites (IPMC) are materials that realize bending movements in response to an electrical stimulus and can be applied to the artificial muscles development. This paper investigated the influence of the hydration level on the electromechanical behavior of Nafion based IPMC. An experimental apparatus composed by a system to measure the bending force and to control the electrical stimulus and the relative humidity around the sample was developed. The main results indicated that samples with higher hydration level produce larger bending forces, but they show a more expressive back relaxation with lower time constant. A discussion about the results considering some models described in the literature conclude the paper. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 09/09928-0 - Synthesis and characterization of composites based on ionic polymer and metal, applied to robotic actuators
• Grantee: Laos Alexandre Hirano
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate