TY - JOUR

T1 - Thermo-active polymer nanocomposites: a spectroscopic study

AU - Campo, E.

AU - Winter, A.D.

AU - Larios, E.

AU - Jay, C.

AU - FIscher, D.A.

AU - Omastova, M.

AU - Campo, E.M.

PY - 2014/9/15

Y1 - 2014/9/15

N2 - Photo- and thermo-mechanical actuation behaviour in specific polymer-carbon nanotube composites has been observed in recent years and studied at the macroscale. These systems may prove to be suitable components for a wide range of applications, from MOEMs and nanotechnology to neuroscience and tissue engineering. Absence of a unified model for actuation behaviour at a molecular level is hindering development of such smart materials. We observed thermomechanical actuation of ethylene-vinyl acetate | carbon nanotube composites through in situ near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy to correlate spectral trends with macroscopic observations. This paper presents spectra of composites and constituents at room temperature to identify resonances in a building block model, followed by spectra acquired during thermo-actuation. Effects of strain-induced filler alignment are also addressed. Spectral resonances associated with C=C and C=O groups underwent synchronised intensity variations during excitation, and were used to propose a conformational model of actuation based on carbon nanotube torsion. Future actuation studies on other active polymer nanocomposites will verify the universality of the proposed model.

AB - Photo- and thermo-mechanical actuation behaviour in specific polymer-carbon nanotube composites has been observed in recent years and studied at the macroscale. These systems may prove to be suitable components for a wide range of applications, from MOEMs and nanotechnology to neuroscience and tissue engineering. Absence of a unified model for actuation behaviour at a molecular level is hindering development of such smart materials. We observed thermomechanical actuation of ethylene-vinyl acetate | carbon nanotube composites through in situ near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy to correlate spectral trends with macroscopic observations. This paper presents spectra of composites and constituents at room temperature to identify resonances in a building block model, followed by spectra acquired during thermo-actuation. Effects of strain-induced filler alignment are also addressed. Spectral resonances associated with C=C and C=O groups underwent synchronised intensity variations during excitation, and were used to propose a conformational model of actuation based on carbon nanotube torsion. Future actuation studies on other active polymer nanocomposites will verify the universality of the proposed model.

U2 - 10.1117/12.2064904

DO - 10.1117/12.2064904

M3 - Article

VL - 9170

SP - 917003

JO - Proceedings of SPIE, Nanoengineering: Fabrication, Properties, Optics, and Devices XI

JF - Proceedings of SPIE, Nanoengineering: Fabrication, Properties, Optics, and Devices XI

SN - 0277-786X

ER -