Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Mechanical Engineering
Characterization Of Hydrogel Curing Methods For Manufacturability, Hannah E. Brown, Rebecca K. Kramer, Edward L. White
Characterization Of Hydrogel Curing Methods For Manufacturability, Hannah E. Brown, Rebecca K. Kramer, Edward L. White
The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium
In the field of soft robotics, hydrogels possess material properties that allow them to function as both soft strain sensors and dielectric elastomer actuators. However, there is still much that needs to be understood about the curing process of hydrogels and the resulting material characteristics before manufacturing these devices can be accomplished. In this study, we investigated the effect of curing time and sample volume on the as-cured material properties of acrylamide-based hydrogels hydrated with lithium and magnesium chloride salt solutions. Samples were cured at room temperature, 60° C and 100° C, and the resulting changes in mechanical stiffness and …
Thermal Properties Of Soft Nanomaterials: Materials Synthesis And Fabrication, Meng Pan, Collier Miers, Amy Marconnet, Yu Han
Thermal Properties Of Soft Nanomaterials: Materials Synthesis And Fabrication, Meng Pan, Collier Miers, Amy Marconnet, Yu Han
The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium
The properties of soft nanomaterials are hard to measure exactly due to their mechanical properties and unstable shape. In particular, hydrogels are a class of cross-linked polymers that can absorb large quantities of water changing their shape under the influence of various conditions such as humidity, temperature, and pH. This research addresses the fabrication of a material that has a significant contrast in properties under different conditions (e.g. temperature, wetting, and pH) and determine the physical mechanisms of heat transfer in this nanomaterial. The hydrogels are made using a several cycles of a freeze-thaw method. The method requires soluble material. …