title: Printable polymer actuators from ionic liquid, soluble polyimide, and ubiquitous carbon materials.
abstract: We present here printable high-performance polymer actuators comprising ionic liquid (IL), soluble polyimide, and ubiquitous carbon materials. Polymer electrolytes with high ionic conductivity and reliable mechanical strength are required for high-performance polymer actuators. The developed polymer electrolytes comprised a soluble sulfonated polyimide (SPI) and IL, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)amide ([C2mim][NTf2]), and they exhibited acceptable ionic conductivity up to 1 × 10(-3) S cm(-1) and favorable mechanical properties (elastic modulus >1 × 10(7) Pa). Polymer actuators based on SPI/[C2mim][NTf2] electrolytes were prepared using inexpensive activated carbon (AC) together with highly electron-conducting carbon such as acetylene black (AB), vapor grown carbon fiber (VGCF), and Ketjen black (KB). The resulting polymer actuators have a trilaminar electric double-layer capacitor structure, consisting of a polymer electrolyte layer sandwiched between carbon electrode layers. Displacement, response speed, and durability of the actuators depended on the combination of carbons. Especially the actuators with mixed AC/KB carbon electrodes exhibited relatively large displacement and high-speed response, and they kept 80% of the initial displacement even after more than 5000 cycles. The generated force of the actuators correlated with the elastic modulus of SPI/[C2mim][NTf2] electrolytes. The displacement of the actuators was proportional to the accumulated electric charge in the electrodes, regardless of carbon materials, and agreed well with the previously proposed displacement model.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, Yokohama National University, Hodogaya-ku, Yokohama, Japan.
authors.forename: Satoru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Imaizumi
authors.forename: Yuto
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ohtsuki
authors.forename: Tomohiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yasuda
authors.forename: Hisashi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kokubo
authors.forename: Masayoshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Watanabe