Standardization of Buckypaper Composite Actuator Fabrication Process and Improvement of Force Generation

• Other Authors: DeGraff, Joshua (authoraut)
• Format: Others
• Language: English; English
• Published: Florida State University
• Subjects: Industrial engineering; Production engineering
• Online Access: http://purl.flvc.org/fsu/fd/FSU_migr_etd-8765

The Buckypaper/Nafion composite actuator (BCA) is promising for lightweight and micro-robotic system applications. Lightweight BCA provides an energy-efficient and flexible design to achieve muscle-like actuation for micro-actuator applications. The BCA encompasses of a solid Nafion electrolyte stacked between two conductive carbon nanotube thin thins or Buckypaper (BP) sheets. As an ionic electro-active polymer (iEAP), Nafion's response to an electrical signal is similar to the electrochemical response of biological muscles. The adhesion between the electrolyte film and the electrode materials is critical to the actuator performance. BCA manufacturing avoids the complexities of repetitive metallic plating, as BP supplies a high surface area film of conductive carbon nanotubes. Since the actuator's charging occurs where the constituent materials come in contact, a standard manufacturing process needs to be developed to ensure repeatability. This research includes two focuses. The first focus pertains to optimizing the ion-exchange processes that improve Nafion's ionic transport properties. The second focus is to strengthening the interaction between Nafion and Buckypaper, which will ensure effective charge accumulation at the interface and improve the BCA's mechanical properties relevant to force exertion. The research presents a novel BCA manufacturing approach to achieve excellent repeatability and significantly improves the BCA's mechanical properties === A Thesis submitted to the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. === Spring Semester, 2014. === April 18, 2014. === Includes bibliographical references. === Zhiyong Liang, Professor Directing Thesis; Arda Vanli, Committee Member; Chad Zeng, Committee Member.