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3D Printing Mechanically Robust and Transparent Polyurethane Elastomers for Stretchable Electronic Sensors.
Shuqiang Peng1,2, Yuewei Li1,2, Lixin Wu1
1CAS Key Laboratory of Design and Assembly of Functional Nanostructures, Fujian Key Laboratory of Nanomaterials , Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Fuzhou 350002 , People's Republic of China.
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
|January 14, 2020
Summary
Researchers developed a new photocurable resin for 3D printing advanced stretchable electronic sensors. This material offers superior mechanical properties, fatigue resistance, and transparency for robust sensor applications.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Polymer Chemistry
- Electronics Engineering
Background:
- Advanced stretchable electronic sensors require substrates with enhanced mechanical properties and simplified manufacturing.
- Existing materials often face limitations in strength, flexibility, and fabrication processes for complex sensor designs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize novel photocurable polyurethane acrylate oligomers for 3D printing stretchable sensor substrates.
- To evaluate the mechanical, optical, and shape-memory properties of the synthesized resins.
- To fabricate and characterize advanced stretchable electronic sensors using the developed materials.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of three polyurethane acrylate oligomers and their formulation into photocurable resins with isobornyl acrylate.
- Characterization of resin properties including viscosity, mechanical strength, elongation at break, fatigue resistance, and optical transparency.
- Fabrication of stretchable sensors by coating an ionic hydrogel onto 3D-printed structures.
- Testing of sensor performance, including conductivity, transparency, and mechanical integrity.
Main Results:
- The PPTMGA-40 resin, containing poly(tetrahydrofuran) units, demonstrated optimal mechanical properties (15.7 MPa tensile strength, 414.3% elongation at break) and shape recoverability.
- PPTMGA-40 exhibited exceptional fatigue resistance, enduring 100 compression cycles at 80% strain without fracture.
- High optical transparency (89.4% at 550 nm) was achieved.
- A robust piezoresistive strain sensor (∼6 MPa strength) and a wearable finger guard sensor were successfully fabricated.
Conclusions:
- The developed hydrogel-elastomer system meets the demanding requirements for advanced stretchable electronic sensors.
- The photocurable resins enable efficient 3D printing of complex sensor structures without custom equipment.
- This work expands the application scope of stretchable electronic sensors through improved material performance and fabrication.
