Preparation of Cellulose Nanocrystal-Reinforced Physical Hydrogels for Actuator Application

Abstract

In the present investigation, we prepared cellulose nanocrystal (CNC)-reinforced polyvinyl alcohol-cellulose (PVA-Cell) physical hydrogels using a simple blending method for actuator application. The prepared hydrogels were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and the surface and cross-section were studied by scanning electron microscopy. CNCs were well dispersed in the PVA-Cell hydrogel. In the preparation process, surface hydroxyl groups of the CNC and PVA-Cell matrix hydroxyl groups were interacted to produce uniform dispersion of CNCs in the hydrogels. Swelling behavior and compression studies revealed that the increase of the CNCs reinforced the crosslinking. The actuation test of the prepared hydrogels showed that the displacement linearly increased with the voltage, and the immense output displacement was observed at low CNC concentration. The prepared hydrogels are applicable for soft robot actuators and active lens.

Lignin–Cellulose Nanocrystals from Hemp Hurd as Light-Coloured Ultraviolet (UV) Functional Filler for Enhanced Performance of Polyvinyl Alcohol Nanocomposite Films

“…The broad peak from 3200-3550 cm −1 is due to the intermolecular and intramolecular hydrogen bond [57]. The hydrogen bonding probably took place between the alcoholic (−OH) side groups of PVA and hydroxyl groups CNCs, as they are both hydrophilic [58,59]. PVA showed a broad peak near 3296-3325 cm −1 , which was identical to the result from Haque et al [60].…”

Effect of A Limited Amount of D-Sorbitol on Pitch and Mechanical Properties of Cellulose Nanocrystal Films

“…Thus, the CNC solid film can exhibit unique optical properties, and when the incident light wavelength is in the visible range, the material appears colorful to the naked eye [18,19]. To date, the research on this optical film has aroused far-ranging interest, such as in optical anti-counterfeiting, sensors, and some composite devices [20][21][22][23][24]. However, the pure CNC film is fragile, which seriously limits its application field and value [25].…”

Quantum-Efficiency Enhancement and Mechanical Responsiveness of Solid-State Photoluminescence Materials Based on Uniaxial Cellulose Nanocrystal Arrays in Flexible Polymer via Assembly-Induced Emission

“…7a and 7b displayed a typical diffraction peaks at 2θ values of around 22.0° in all samples, which is coincident of diffraction planes of (200) in the cellulose I crystal (French 2013). The diffraction peaks at 2θ values of around 20° belong to the PVA (Kim et al 2020). The crystallinity of CNCs can be represented by Segal crystallinity index (CrI) (French et al 2013).…”