3D printing of ultra-tough, self-healing transparent conductive elastomeric sensors

作者：Cai, Ling; Chen, Guangxue; Su, Bin^*; He, Minghui^*

来源：Chemical Engineering Journal, 2021, 426: 130545.

DOI：10.1016/j.cej.2021.130545

• Transparent conductive elastomer
• 3D printing
• Ultra-tough & self-healing elastomer
• Polymerizable deep eutectic solvents
• Sensors

Ultra-tough transparent conductive elastomers (TCEs) with self-healing performance are of great significance for research in the fields of soft robotics, optical display electronics, wearable electronic equipment and human-computer interaction. However, their limitation, such as the desolventizing process, low polymerization rate or balance between toughness and self-healing performance, cause difficulty in manufacturing by the 3D printing technique. Here, we propose a novel preparation strategy for 3D printed TCEs based on the photopolymerization of maleic acid (MA)/choline chloride (ChCl) and acrylamide (AAm)/choline chloride type polymerizable deep eutectic solvents (PDESs). PDES can polymerize into a tough and rich in hydrogen bonds poly(PDES) in a few seconds without solvent evaporation. The printed TCEs with precision of 10 mu m have high transparency (95.6%) and stable electrical signals at 50% compression for 10,000 cycles. In addition, efficient self-healing performance due to the dynamic hydrogen bonds of poly(PDES) provides broad application prospects for 3D printed TCEs in long-term pressure-resistant intelligent applications.

• 单位
  华中科技大学