Actions for Synthesis and Characterization of Polyzwitterions as Dielectric Elastomeric Actuators for Soft Robotics

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Synthesis and Characterization of Polyzwitterions as Dielectric Elastomeric Actuators for Soft Robotics

Author
Poudel, Bharat
Published
[University Park, Pennsylvania] : Pennsylvania State University, 2024.
Physical Description
1 electronic document
Additional Creators
Hickey, Robert J. and Elacqua, Elizabeth A.
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Open Access.
Summary
Dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) are critical components for the mechanical movements in soft robotics. DEAs utilize the unique properties of polymers dielectrics (i.e., dielectric constant) to generate mechanical motion in response to applied electric fields. However, elastomers that are readily accessible in the market generally lack a high dielectric constant, thus large voltages are necessary to induce desirable strains but typically fail due to dielectric breakdown. Recent advances have shown that chemically modifying polymers with polar groups will increase material dielectric constant, but the increase is minimal. Thus, new approaches are necessary to increase material dielectric constant. Zwitterions are neutral small molecules but contain both an anion and a cation functional group. Previous studies have shown that the large dipole moment between the two charges renders materials containing zwitterions with exceptionally high dielectric constant. However, these zwitterions exist mostly in liquid state and cannot be used as elastomers. We propose that if a polymer is functionalized with zwitterions, it can exhibit significantly high dielectric constant with elastic properties intact that can be best suitable for actuators. Future plans are to investigate the mechanical properties and actuation properties to see how these zwitterionic polymers would be different from the existing dielectric elastomers. This work ultimately aims to develop synthetic methodologies to synthesize functional polyzwitterions with high dielectric constant and explore their use as actuators.
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Dissertation Note
M.S. Pennsylvania State University 2024.
Technical Details
The full text of the dissertation is available as an Adobe Acrobat .pdf file ; Adobe Acrobat Reader required to view the file.
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