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Microfluidic Preparation of Liquid Crystalline Elastomer Actuators
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Free-Form Liquid Crystal Elastomers via Embedded 4D Printing.

Luke McDougall1, Jeremy Herman1,2, Emily Huntley1

  • 1Advanced Materials Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106, United States.

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
|December 12, 2023
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Summary

Researchers developed embedded 4D printing to create complex, free-standing 3D liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) architectures. This advance enables new possibilities for responsive smart structures and advanced material applications.

Keywords:
4D printingembedded printingfree form printingliquid crystal elastomerssoft mechanicssoft robots

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Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Polymer Chemistry
  • Additive Manufacturing

Background:

  • Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) are active materials capable of rapid, reversible mechanical actuation when exposed to external stimuli.
  • Current 4D printing methods for LCEs are largely restricted to flat objects, limiting the complexity and functionality of smart structures.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a novel fabrication method for creating complex, free-standing 3D architectures using LCEs.
  • To overcome the limitations of existing 4D printing techniques for LCEs, enabling greater shape complexity and functionality.

Main Methods:

  • Introduced an embedded 4D printing technique.
  • Extruded hydrophobic LCE ink into an aqueous, thixotropic gel matrix.
  • Successfully produced free-standing, free-form 3D LCE architectures.

Main Results:

  • Demonstrated the ability to fabricate complex, three-dimensional LCE structures.
  • Preserved the inherent mechanical actuation properties of the LCEs within the 3D architectures.
  • Achieved free-standing, free-form structures without the need for support materials.

Conclusions:

  • The developed embedded 4D printing method allows for the creation of intricate, free-standing 3D LCE structures.
  • This technique expands the design space for LCE-based functional and responsive systems.
  • Potential applications include reconfigurable metamaterials, soft robotics, and biomedical devices.