Piezoelectric Polymer and Paper Substrates: A Review

Abstract

Polymers and papers, which exhibit piezoelectricity, find a wide range of applications in the industry. Ever since the discovery of PVDF, piezo polymers and papers have been widely used for sensor and actuator design. The direct piezoelectric effect has been used for sensor design, whereas the inverse piezoelectric effect has been applied for actuator design. Piezo polymers and papers have the advantages of mechanical flexibility, lower fabrication cost and faster processing over commonly used piezoelectric materials, such as PZT, BaTiO3. In addition, many polymer and paper materials are considered biocompatible and can be used in bio applications. In the last 20 years, heterostructural materials, such as polymer composites and hybrid paper, have received a lot of attention since they combine the flexibility of polymer or paper, and excellent pyroelectric and piezoelectric properties of ceramics. This paper gives an overview of piezoelectric polymers and papers based on their operating principle. Main categories of piezoelectric polymers and papers are discussed with a focus on their materials and fabrication techniques. Applications of piezoelectric polymers and papers in different areas are also presented.

Surface Studies of UV Irradiated Polypropylene Films Modified with Mineral Fillers Designed as Piezoelectric Materials

“…The piezoelectric charge constant, d 33 , is the quantity which refers to the piezoelectric effect and is defined as the charged density generated upon applied stress. Generally, the higher d 33 value the better piezoelectric properties of a material [1,4].PVDF copolymers, polyamides, Parylene-C, liquid crystal polymers belong to the semi-crystalline polymers exhibiting piezoelectric properties [1,2].Amorphous polymers have to possess molecular dipoles in their structure. Heating the amorphous polymers above the glass transition temperature, T g , and applying a strong electric field orients the present molecular dipoles.…”

“…The mobility of polymer chains is greater above T g and reduces below T g . The stiffness and brittleness are the characteristics of polymers below T g in a glassy state, while elasticity and softness are typical of polymers above T g in a rubbery state.Amorphous bulk polymers encompass polyimides and polyacrylonitrile [1,2]. Combination of piezoceramics and polymers results in the formation of polymer composites in which the piezoceramics particles are dispersed in the polymer matrix.…”

“…The aim of such procedure is to obtain the polymer composites based on materials whose advantageous features are used, e.g., high dielectric constant of piezoceramics and good flexibility of a polymer. The polymer does not have to be a piezopolymer, usually polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) or poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) are used for the preparation of the polymer composites [1][2][3][4].Voided charged polymers, called also cellular polymers, have gas voids inserted in them. The gas molecules in these holes can be ionized after applying a strong electric field.…”

“…Cellular polypropylene (PP) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) are typical examples of piezomaterials of this group [1][2][3][4].Piezopolymers are widely used in many different devices. They are used for production of e.g., sensors, actuators, transducers, loudspeakers, and vibration energy harvesters [1][2][3][4]. It seems that their usage will increase in the future [1][2][3][4].…”

Fully Printed Piezoelectric Polymer Loudspeakers with Enhanced Acoustic Performance

“…Strong piezoelectricity in poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) was first reported by Kawai in 1969. [5][6][7][8][9][10][11] Based on the inverse piezoelectric effect, piezoelectric materials vibrate under alternating driving electric field. Therefore, research and application of piezoelectric polymers have attracted a lot of attention, although their piezoelectric sensitivity still cannot compete with that of some of their ceramic counterparts.…”