Abstract
Ionic electroactive polymer (IEAP) actuators that are driven by electrical stimuli have been widely investigated for use in practical applications. However, conventional electrodes in IEAP actuators have a serious drawback of poor durability under long-term actuation in open air, mainly because of leakage of the inner electrolyte and hydrated cations through surface cracks on the metallic electrodes. To overcome this problem, a top priority is developing new high-performance ionic polymer actuators with graphene electrodes that have superior mechanical, electrical conductivity, and electromechanical properties. However, the task is made difficultby issues such as the low electrical conductivity of graphene (G). The percolation network of silver nanowires (Ag-NWs) is believed to enhance the conductivity of graphene, while poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), which exhibits excellent stability under ambient conditions, is expected to improve the actuation performance of IEAP actuators. In this study, we developed a very fast, stable, and durable IEAP actuator by employing electrodes made of a nanocomposite comprising PEDOT:PSS and graphene–Ag-NWs (P/(G–Ag)). The cost-effective P/(G–Ag) electrodes with high electrical conductivity displayed a smooth surface resulting from the PEDOT:PSS coating, which prevented oxidation of the surface upon exposure to air, and showedstrong bonding between the ionic polymer and the electrode surface. More interestingly, the proposed IEAP actuator based on the P/G–Ag electrode can be used in active biomedical devices, biomimetic robots, wearable electronics, and flexible soft electronics.
Highlights
Electroactive polymers (EAPs) have been considered for potential application in various fields such as robotics, aerospace, and bio-mimetics [1,2,3,4,5,6]
The proposed Ionic electroactive polymer (IEAP) actuator based on the P/G–Ag electrode can be used in active biomedical devices, biomimetic robots, wearable electronics, and flexible soft electronics
We developed a new IEAP actuator based on PEDOT:PSS/(graphene–Ag-NWs)
Summary
Electroactive polymers (EAPs) have been considered for potential application in various fields such as robotics, aerospace, and bio-mimetics [1,2,3,4,5,6]. The application of a PEDOT:PSS film to an IEAP actuator is expected to result in synergistic coupling between the thin nanostructured electrodes and the polymer, improve stability, and prevent detachment of Ag-NWs during long-term actuation. These electrodes for flexible actuators can be fabricated through solution processing, and the actuators will offer the advantages of inexpensive cost, short fabrication time, high electrical conductivity, high stability under the real-life operating conditions, rapid response, high durability, and high actuation performance
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