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Bending of ionic polymer gel caused by swelling under sinusoidally varying electric fields
Author(s) -
Shiga Tohru,
Hirose Yoshiharu,
Okada Akane,
Kurauchi Toshio
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.1993.070470114
Subject(s) - polyacrylic acid , swelling , electrolyte , materials science , aqueous solution , vinyl alcohol , bending , polymer , electric field , polymer chemistry , composite material , osmotic pressure , solvent , ionic bonding , chemical engineering , ion , chemistry , organic chemistry , electrode , biochemistry , physics , quantum mechanics , engineering
Deformation of poly(vinyl alcohol)–poly(sodium acrylate) composite hydrogel (PVA–PAA gel) under sinusoidally varying electric fields was studied in electrolyte solutions. The PVA–PAA gel was prepared by repeatedly freezing and thawing a mixed solution of PVA and polyacrylic acid. A cyclic bending–straightening motion of the PVA–PAA gel rods of about 1 mm in diameter have been observed in Na 2 CO 3 aqueous solutions under the fields. The PVA–PAA gel had a response time of less than several hundreds milliseconds. The bending has also been observed in organic solvents containing an electrolyte when the organic solvent is electrolyzed. It was found that the motion of the gel under electric fields of less than 1 Hz occurred mainly through swelling due to the change of the osmotic pressure based upon the difference of the ion concentration. However, it has not been determined whether the motion at higher frequencies is caused by the osmotic effect. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.