Conductive PVDF-HFP/CNT composites for strain sensing

2016 ◽  
Vol 09 (02) ◽  
pp. 1650024 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bin Hu ◽  
Yaolu Liu ◽  
Ning Hu ◽  
Liangke Wu ◽  
Huiming Ning ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Vinylidene Fluoride ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Tunneling Effect ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Metal Foil ◽  
Strain Sensing ◽  
Good Dispersion ◽  
Dispersion State ◽  
Addition Amount

A strain sensor based on the composites of poly (vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) filled by multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWNT) was prepared using a proposed fabrication process. Three kinds of MWNT loadings, i.e., 1.0[Formula: see text]wt.%, 2.0[Formula: see text]wt.% and 3.0[Formula: see text]wt.% were employed. Due to good dispersion state of MWNT in PVDF-HFP matrix, which was characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), this sensor was found to be of high sensitivity and stable performance. The sensor’s piezoresistivity varied in a weak nonlinear pattern, which was probably caused by the tunneling effect among neighboring MWNTs. The gauge factor of the sensor of 1.0[Formula: see text]wt.% MWNT loading was identified to be the highest, i.e., 33. This sensor gauge factor decreased gradually with the increase of addition amount of MWNT, which was 5 for the sensor of 3.0[Formula: see text]wt.% MWNT loading. This gauge factor was still higher than that of conventional metal-foil strain sensors. The electrical conductivity of PVDF-HFP/MWNT composites was also studied. It was found that with the increase of the addition amount of MWNT, the electrical conductivity of the PVDF-HFP/MWNT composites varied in a perfect percolation pattern with a very low percolation threshold, i.e., 0.77 vol.%, further indicating the very good dispersion of MWNT in the PVDF-HFP matrix.

Characterization of MWCNTs-polystyrene nanocomposite based strain sensor

2020 ◽  
pp. 095440892096630
Author(s):  
Tarun Singla ◽  
Amrinder Pal Singh ◽  
Suresh Kumar ◽  
Gagandeep Singh ◽  
Navin Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Nanotubes ◽  
Electrical Response ◽  
Composite Films ◽  
Tensile Load ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Strain Sensing ◽  
Nano Composite ◽  
Microscopy Technique ◽  
Sensing Applications

The usage of nano phase materials for strain sensing applications has attracted attention due to their unique electromechanical properties. The nanocomposite as piezo-resistive films provides an alternative for the realization of strain sensors with high sensitivity than the conventional sensors based on metal and semiconductor strain gauges. In this work, polymer based nano-composite with carbon nanotubes as filler were developed. The multi-walled carbon nanotubes/polystyrene (MWCNTs/PS) nano-composite films were prepared with different wt.% of CNTs using solution mixing method. Field emission scanning electron microscopy technique was carried out to investigate the morphology and dispersion of CNTs in the nano-composite sample. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy technique was employed to characterize the bonds present in the prepared nano-composite. The electrical response of the composite films was recorded in the form of current-voltage (I-V) characteristics using source meter. The electromechanical response of the nano-composite films with different wt.% of filler CNTs was recorded by applying uni-axial tensile load. The electromechanical responses were then analyzed to obtain gauge factor for the strain sensitivity. The highest gauge factor of 133 was recorded during tensile testing of the nano-composite with 3 wt.% of CNTs fillers.

A capacitive sensor using resin thermoplastic elastomer and carbon fibers for monitoring pressure distribution

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guanzheng Wu ◽  
Siming Li ◽  
Jiayu Hu ◽  
Manchen Dong ◽  
Ke Dong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Carbon Fibers ◽  
Pressure Sensor ◽  
Pressure Sensors ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Thermoplastic Elastomer ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Capacitive Pressure Sensor ◽  
Wearable Electronics ◽  
Content Type

Purpose This paper aims to study the working principle of the capacitive pressure sensor and explore the distribution of pressure acting on the surface of the capacitor. Herein, a kind of high sensitivity capacitive pressure sensor was prepared by overlaying carbon fibers (CFs) on the surfaces of the thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), the TPE with high elasticity is a dielectric elastomer for the sensor and the CFs with excellent electrical conductivity were designed as the conductor. Design/methodology/approach Due to the excellent mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of CFs, it was designed as the conductor layer for the TPE/CFs capacitive pressure sensor via laminating CFs on the surfaces of the columnar TPE. Then, a ‘#' type structure of the capacitive pressure sensor was designed and fabricated. Findings The ‘#' type of capacitive pressure sensor of TPE/CFs composite was obtained in high sensitivity with a gauge factor of 2.77. Furthermore, the change of gauge factor values of the sensor under 10 per cent of applied strains was repeated for 1,000 cycles, indicating its outstanding sensing stability. Moreover, the ‘#' type capacitive pressure sensor of TPE/CFs was consisted of several capacitor arrays via laminating CFs, which could detect the distribution of pressure. Research limitations/implications The TPE/CFs capacitive pressure sensor was easily fabricated with high sensitivity and quick responsiveness, which is desirably applied in wearable electronics, robots, medical devices, etc. Originality/value The outcome of this study will help to fabricate capacitive pressure sensors with high sensitivity and outstanding sensing stability.

scholarly journals A Study of Highly Sensitive Wearable Strain Sensor Based on Graphical Sensitive Units

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Jie Wang ◽  
Yi Du ◽  
Qiang Zhang ◽  
Zhu Jing ◽  
Kai Zhuo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Silver Nanowires ◽  
Strain Sensor ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Sine Wave ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Soft Substrate ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Sensitivity Improvement

The sensitivity improvement is the choke point of the soft strain sensor’s development. This paper focuses on heightening the soft strain sensor’s sensitivity through changing the sensitive unit’s shape. The sensitive units in shape of square or sine wave with different periods were studied in this work. Silver nanowires (Ag NWs) in excellent electrical conductivity and flexible polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) were used as sensitive nanomaterials and soft substrate. The soft strain sensor whose sensitive unit is double cycled square wave performs the highest sensitivity whose gauge factor (GF) reaches to 14763.8. Based on the high sensitivity, the sensor was applied on real-time detection of the human expression.

scholarly journals Smart Fibrous Structures Produced by Electrospinning Using the Combined Effect of PCL/Graphene Nanoplatelets

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 1124
Author(s):  
Paola Francavilla ◽  
Diana P. Ferreira ◽  
Joana C. Araújo ◽  
Raul Fangueiro
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Graphene Nanoplatelets ◽  
Electrical Performance ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Homogeneous Distribution ◽  
Piezoresistive Sensor ◽  
Conductive Surface ◽  
External Pressures ◽  
Electrospun Membranes

Over the years, the development of adaptable monitoring systems to be integrated into soldiers’ body gear, making them as comfortable and lightweight as possible (avoiding the use of rigid electronics), has become essential. Electrospun microfibers are a great material for this application due to their excellent properties, especially their flexibility and lightness. Their functionalization with graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) makes them a fantastic alternative for the development of innovative conductive materials. In this work, electrospun membranes based on polycaprolactone (PCL) were impregnated with different GNPs concentrations in order to create an electrically conductive surface with piezoresistive behavior. All the samples were properly characterized, demonstrating the homogeneous distribution and the GNPs’ adsorption onto the membrane’s surfaces. Additionally, the electrical performance of the developed systems was studied, including the electrical conductivity, piezoresistive behavior, and Gauge Factor (GF). A maximum electrical conductivity value of 0.079 S/m was obtained for the 2%GNPs-PCL sample. The developed piezoresistive sensor showed high sensitivity to external pressures and excellent durability to repetitive pressing. The best value of GF (3.20) was obtained for the membranes with 0.5% of GNPs. Hence, this work presents the development of a flexible piezoresistive sensor, based on electrospun PCL microfibers and GNPs, utilizing simple methods.

Embedded 3D Printing of Highly Flexible Nanocomposites With Piezoresistive Sensing Capabilities

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blake Herren ◽  
Mrinal C. Saha ◽  
M. Cengiz Altan ◽  
Yingtao Liu
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Human Skin ◽  
Strain Sensor ◽  
Strain Range ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Curing Temperature ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Strain Sensing ◽  
Sensing Applications ◽  
Human Joints

Abstract In recent years, highly flexible nanocomposite sensors have been developed for the detection of a variety of human body movements. To precisely detect the bending motions of human joints, the sensors must be able to conform well with the human skin and produce signals that effectively describe the amount of deformation applied to the material during bending. In this paper, a carbon nanotube-based piezoresistive strain sensor is developed via the direct ink writing based embedded 3D printing method. The optimum weight concentration range of carbon nanotubes in the nanocomposite inks, appropriate for embedded 3D printing, is identified. Samples with complex 2D and 3D geometries are printed to demonstrate the manufacturing capabilities of the embedded printing process. The sensitivity of the piezoresistive strain sensor is optimized by determining the ideal nanofiller concentration, curing temperature, and nozzle size to produce the highest gauge factor in a wide strain range. The piezoresistive and mechanical properties of the optimized sensors are fully characterized to verify the suitability for skin-attachable strain sensing applications. The developed sensors have a wide sensing range, high sensitivity, and minimal strain rate dependence. In addition, their low elasticity and high biocompatibility allow them to be comfortably bonded on the human skin.

scholarly journals Transparent, Conductive Hydrogels with High Mechanical Strength and Toughness

Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 2004
Author(s):  
Xiuru Xu ◽  
Chubin He ◽  
Feng Luo ◽  
Hao Wang ◽  
Zhengchun Peng
Keyword(s):  
Mechanical Strength ◽  
Body Surface ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Fast Response ◽  
Light Transmittance ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Strain Sensing ◽  
Breaking Strain ◽  
Conductive Hydrogels ◽  
Strength And Toughness

Transparent, conductive hydrogels with good mechanical strength and toughness are in great demand of the fields of biomedical and future wearable smart electronics. We reported a carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS)–calcium chloride (CaCl2)/polyacrylamide (PAAm)/poly(N-methylol acrylamide (PNMA) transparent, tough and conductive hydrogel containing a bi-physical crosslinking network through in situ free radical polymerization. It showed excellent light transmittance (>90%), excellent toughness (10.72 MJ/m3), good tensile strength (at break, 2.65 MPa), breaking strain (707%), and high elastic modulus (0.30 MPa). The strain sensing performance is found with high sensitivity (maximum gauge factor 9.18, 0.5% detection limit), wide strain response range, fast response and recovery time, nearly zero hysteresis and good repeatability. This study extends the transparent, tough, conductive hydrogels to provide body-surface wearable devices that can accurately and repeatedly monitor the movement of body joints, including the movements of wrists, elbows and knee joints. This study provided a broad development potential for tough, transparent and conductive hydrogels as body-surface intelligent health monitoring systems and implantable soft electronics.

scholarly journals Giant gauge factor of Van der Waals material based strain sensors

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenjie Yan ◽  
Huei-Ru Fuh ◽  
Yanhui Lv ◽  
Ke-Qiu Chen ◽  
Tsung-Yin Tsai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carrier Mobility ◽  
Large Range ◽  
Van Der Waals ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Strain Sensors ◽  
Strain Gauges ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Proof Of Concept ◽  
High Flexibility ◽  
Small Deformations

AbstractThere is an emergent demand for high-flexibility, high-sensitivity and low-power strain gauges capable of sensing small deformations and vibrations in extreme conditions. Enhancing the gauge factor remains one of the greatest challenges for strain sensors. This is typically limited to below 300 and set when the sensor is fabricated. We report a strategy to tune and enhance the gauge factor of strain sensors based on Van der Waals materials by tuning the carrier mobility and concentration through an interplay of piezoelectric and photoelectric effects. For a SnS2 sensor we report a gauge factor up to 3933, and the ability to tune it over a large range, from 23 to 3933. Results from SnS2, GaSe, GeSe, monolayer WSe2, and monolayer MoSe2 sensors suggest that this is a universal phenomenon for Van der Waals semiconductors. We also provide proof of concept demonstrations by detecting vibrations caused by sound and capturing body movements.

Flexible Fibrous Piezo-Electric Sensor on Printed Silver Electrode

2014 ◽  
Vol 1685 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ho Yeon Son ◽  
Yoon Sung Nam ◽  
Woo Soo Kim
Keyword(s):  
Vinylidene Fluoride ◽  
Silver Nanowires ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Piezoelectric Sensor ◽  
Piezoelectric Sensors ◽  
Mechanical Stimuli ◽  
Aligned Arrays ◽  
Poly Vinylidene Fluoride ◽  
Facile Fabrication

ABSTRACTHere we introduce a facile method to fabricate a flexible piezoelectric sensor using one-dimensional (1-D) piezoelectric poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) nanofibers directly produced onto flexible printed electrodes by electro-spinning without an additional poling process. The flexible silver electrodes are fabricated on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) using silver nanowires by easy and cost-effective spraying deposition. The electrospun PVDF nanofibers have uniaxially aligned arrays on the electrodes by using a rotating collector. The fabricated PVDF piezoelectric sensors demonstrate the piezoelectric responses with repeated mechanical stimuli with good flexibility and high sensitivity. We expect that the facile fabrication of PVDF piezoelectric sensors on flexible printed electrodes can be usefully exploited to integrate the piezoelectric sensors into flexible and stretchable functional electronic devices.

Repeatability and Extended Time Stability Study of an Additively Printed Strain Gauge Under Different Load Conditions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pradeep Lall ◽  
Jinesh Narangaparambil ◽  
Tony Thomas ◽  
Kyle Schulze
Keyword(s):  
Strain Gauge ◽  
Printed Electronics ◽  
Performance Testing ◽  
Temperature Limit ◽  
Stability Study ◽  
Strain Gauges ◽  
Gauge Factor ◽  
Wearable Electronics ◽  
Strain Sensing ◽  
Sintering Conditions

Abstract Printed electronics has found new applications in wearable electronics owing to the opportunities for integration, and the ability of sustaining folding, flexing and twisting. Continuous monitoring necessitates the production of sensors, which include temperature, humidity, sweat, and strain sensors. In this paper, a process study was performed on the FR4 board while taking into account multiple printing parameters for the direct-write system. The process parameters include ink pressure, print speed, and stand-off height, as well as their effect on the trace profile and print consistency using white light interferometry analysis. The printed traces have also been studied for different sintering conditions while keeping the FR4 board’s temperature limit in mind. The paper also discusses the effect of sintering conditions on mechanical and electrical properties, specifically shear load to failure and resistivity. The data from this was then used to print strain gauges and compared them to commercially available strain gauges. By reporting the gauge factor, the printed strain gauge has been standardized. The conductive ink’s strain sensing capabilities will be studied under tensile cyclic loading (3-point bending) at various strain rates and maximum strains. Long-term performance testing will be carried out using cyclic tensile loads.

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