Direct Writing Corrugated PVC Gel Artificial Muscle via Multi-Material Printing Processes
Electroactive PVC gel is a new artificial muscle material with good performance that can mimic the movement of biological muscle in an electric field. However, traditional manufacturing methods, such as casting, prevent the broad application of this promising material because they cannot achieve the...
Main Authors: | , , , , |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
MDPI AG
2021-08-01
|
Series: | Polymers |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/13/16/2734 |
id |
doaj-cd3fc19abdba4fb0a3c2a50dcfba7fe2 |
---|---|
record_format |
Article |
spelling |
doaj-cd3fc19abdba4fb0a3c2a50dcfba7fe22021-08-26T14:15:23ZengMDPI AGPolymers2073-43602021-08-01132734273410.3390/polym13162734Direct Writing Corrugated PVC Gel Artificial Muscle via Multi-Material Printing ProcessesBin Luo0Yiding Zhong1Hualing Chen2Zicai Zhu3Yanjie Wang4State Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, ChinaSchool of Mechanical Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, ChinaState Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, ChinaSchool of Mechanical Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, ChinaChangzhou Campus, School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Hohai University, Changzhou 213022, ChinaElectroactive PVC gel is a new artificial muscle material with good performance that can mimic the movement of biological muscle in an electric field. However, traditional manufacturing methods, such as casting, prevent the broad application of this promising material because they cannot achieve the integration of the PVC gel electrode and core layer, and at the same time, it is difficult to create complex and diverse structures. In this study, a multi-material, integrated direct writing method is proposed to fabricate corrugated PVC gel artificial muscle. Inks with suitable rheological properties were developed for printing four functional layers, including core layers, electrode layers, sacrificial layers, and insulating layers, with different characteristics. The curing conditions of the printed CNT/SMP inks under different applied conditions were also discussed. The structural parameters were optimized to improve the actuating performance of the PVC gel artificial muscle. The corrugated PVC gel with a span of 1.6 mm had the best actuating performance. Finally, we printed three layers of corrugated PVC gel artificial muscle with good actuating performance. The proposed method can help to solve the inherent shortcomings of traditional manufacturing methods of PVC gel actuators. The printed structures have potential applications in many fields, such as soft robotics and flexible electronic devices.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/13/16/2734direct writingPVC gelartificial musclerheological behaviorintegrated printing |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Bin Luo Yiding Zhong Hualing Chen Zicai Zhu Yanjie Wang |
spellingShingle |
Bin Luo Yiding Zhong Hualing Chen Zicai Zhu Yanjie Wang Direct Writing Corrugated PVC Gel Artificial Muscle via Multi-Material Printing Processes Polymers direct writing PVC gel artificial muscle rheological behavior integrated printing |
author_facet |
Bin Luo Yiding Zhong Hualing Chen Zicai Zhu Yanjie Wang |
author_sort |
Bin Luo |
title |
Direct Writing Corrugated PVC Gel Artificial Muscle via Multi-Material Printing Processes |
title_short |
Direct Writing Corrugated PVC Gel Artificial Muscle via Multi-Material Printing Processes |
title_full |
Direct Writing Corrugated PVC Gel Artificial Muscle via Multi-Material Printing Processes |
title_fullStr |
Direct Writing Corrugated PVC Gel Artificial Muscle via Multi-Material Printing Processes |
title_full_unstemmed |
Direct Writing Corrugated PVC Gel Artificial Muscle via Multi-Material Printing Processes |
title_sort |
direct writing corrugated pvc gel artificial muscle via multi-material printing processes |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Polymers |
issn |
2073-4360 |
publishDate |
2021-08-01 |
description |
Electroactive PVC gel is a new artificial muscle material with good performance that can mimic the movement of biological muscle in an electric field. However, traditional manufacturing methods, such as casting, prevent the broad application of this promising material because they cannot achieve the integration of the PVC gel electrode and core layer, and at the same time, it is difficult to create complex and diverse structures. In this study, a multi-material, integrated direct writing method is proposed to fabricate corrugated PVC gel artificial muscle. Inks with suitable rheological properties were developed for printing four functional layers, including core layers, electrode layers, sacrificial layers, and insulating layers, with different characteristics. The curing conditions of the printed CNT/SMP inks under different applied conditions were also discussed. The structural parameters were optimized to improve the actuating performance of the PVC gel artificial muscle. The corrugated PVC gel with a span of 1.6 mm had the best actuating performance. Finally, we printed three layers of corrugated PVC gel artificial muscle with good actuating performance. The proposed method can help to solve the inherent shortcomings of traditional manufacturing methods of PVC gel actuators. The printed structures have potential applications in many fields, such as soft robotics and flexible electronic devices. |
topic |
direct writing PVC gel artificial muscle rheological behavior integrated printing |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/13/16/2734 |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT binluo directwritingcorrugatedpvcgelartificialmuscleviamultimaterialprintingprocesses AT yidingzhong directwritingcorrugatedpvcgelartificialmuscleviamultimaterialprintingprocesses AT hualingchen directwritingcorrugatedpvcgelartificialmuscleviamultimaterialprintingprocesses AT zicaizhu directwritingcorrugatedpvcgelartificialmuscleviamultimaterialprintingprocesses AT yanjiewang directwritingcorrugatedpvcgelartificialmuscleviamultimaterialprintingprocesses |
_version_ |
1721190553170739200 |