Effects of plasticizers on novel electromechanical actuations with different poly(vinyl chloride) gels

Abstract

Four different plasticizers were applied to make different poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) gels, poly(vinyl chloride)‐bis(2‐ethylhexyl)phthalate (PVC‐DOP), poly(vinyl chloride)‐di‐n‐butylphthalate, poly(vinyl chloride)‐bis(2‐ethylhexyl)adipate, and poly(vinyl chloride)‐tris(2‐ethylhexyl)trimellitate. In our previous work, we reported that PVC‐DOP gel exhibits novel and reversible deformations of creeping and jointlike bending induced by direct current electric fields. In this article, we scrutinize the effects of plasticizers on electromechanical actuations, that is, reversible creeping and bending actuation with four of the different aforementioned gels. We measured the relative creeping distance, creeping area, creeping velocity, current observed, and bending angle as a function of applied electric fields for different PVC gels and found significant differences among them. To explain these variations, we compared the utility of plasticizers on the basis of the properties of different PVC gels, such as plasticizer‐retention ability, bending modulus, elongation at break, and the dielectric constant. The mentioned properties of the PVC gels played vital roles on their electromechanical actuations. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 2119–2127, 2003

Co‐Assembly and Self‐Sorting Effects in Gels of Blends of Polyurethane Model Compounds

“…With Δx > 2, self‐sorting occurred in the two‐component gels. While plasticizing effect in the case of polymer gels has been observed before, the co‐assembly and self‐sorting behavior in two‐component gels of homologous pairs of biscarbamates presented in this paper are novel features that have not been reported hitherto. The sergeant‐soldier effect relates to the conformational effect in the case of chiral/non‐chiral mixtures.…”

“…Jones et al studied poly (ethyl methacrylate) gels used for denture soft linings and found that addition of phthalate type plasticizers enhanced the gelation rate. Uddin et al investigated the effect of phthalate plasticizers on the gels of poly (vinyl chloride), which undergo mechanical deformations by an application of an electric field. Although such studies on the gels of plasticized polymers have been reported, the mutual plasticizer effect that we observed here with the two component gels of these small molecules, which are homologous, is novel.…”

Highly Electroresponsive Polymer Blends of Polyaniline Nanoparticles and Chloroprene Rubbers

“…This group can be polarized and store energy under the electric field, which leads to dimensional changes within the polymer. 38,39 In addition, the chloride groups are electrophiles; they can pull electrons from carbon atoms. Under the applied electric field, the polarities of this group become negative and generate the attractive force between unlike charges on the anode electrode and chloroprene rubbers leading to the bending toward the anode side (positive side).…”

Electrically Active Artificial Pupil Showing Amoeba‐Like Pseudopodial Deformation

“…To investigate these problems, we have studied electrically bending actuations of a non-ionic gel using plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) membranes containing plasticizers. [20][21][22] Here, using a soft material made of plasticized PVC, a non-ionic gel, we show that an artificial pupil can control focus with the application of an electric field. We have found that the structure of physical crosslinking was sustained even at a plasticizer content of 90%, and that our artificial pupil was stable for over two years at room temperature in air with occasional operation (about 100 times) without bleeding out.…”

“…We have found that the structure of physical crosslinking was sustained even at a plasticizer content of 90%, and that our artificial pupil was stable for over two years at room temperature in air with occasional operation (about 100 times) without bleeding out. We established that the focus of the artificial pupil varied as a result of creep deformation, here denoted ''electrotactic deformation,'' [20][21][22] which resembled the pseudopodial deformation of an amoeba in an electric field. The artificial pupil was capable of highly efficient energy conversion during this deformation, since the leak current observed was at the nanoampere level, and the pupil material also showed excellent durability.…”