Flexible Actuators with Hygroscopic Adaptability for Smart Wearables and Soft Grippers.

Autor: Wu J; MOE Key Laboratory of Eco-textiles, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China., Jiang W; Textile Intelligent Manufacture, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China., Gu M; Textile Intelligent Manufacture, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China., Sun F; MOE Key Laboratory of Eco-textiles, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China.; Laboratory of Soft Fibrous Materials, College of Textiles Science and Engineering, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China., Han C; MOE Key Laboratory of Eco-textiles, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China., Gong H; University of Manchester, Manchester M139PL, U.K.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: ACS applied materials & interfaces [ACS Appl Mater Interfaces] 2023 Dec 27; Vol. 15 (51), pp. 59989-60001. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Dec 12.
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c16532
Abstrakt: Flexible actuators have garnered significant interest in the domains of biomedical devices, human-machine interfaces, and smart wearables. However, the mechanical properties of existing materials are not sufficiently robust, and the expensive and time-consuming pretreatment process and the ambiguous high-degree-of-freedom deformation mechanism make it difficult to meet the demands of industrialized production. Hence, drawing inspiration from the adaptable movement of living organisms in the natural world, this research created and engineered a fully textile-based humidity-sensitive flexible actuator (TbHs-FA) using high-cost-effective viscose/PET fibers as raw materials. The breakthrough development in actuation performance is covered, including substantial contraction force (92.53 cN), high actuation curvature (16.78 cm -1 ), and fast response (264 cN s -1 and 46.61 cm -1 s -1 ). Additionally, the programmable stiffness system and weave structure give TbHs-FAs low hysteresis and fatigue resistance, narrowing the gap between the conceptual laboratory-scale design of existing fully textile-based humidity-sensitive flexible actuators and actual textiles. The high-degree-of-freedom and large bending deformation mechanisms are elucidated for the first time by combining microscopic mechanical structure simulation and macroscopic energy conversion analysis. The novel humidity-sensitive flexible actuator possesses strong mechanical qualities, making it suitable for applications such as flexible robots, medicinal devices, and smart wearables.
Databáze: MEDLINE