Scientists in China have flexed their muscles with a new steam-driven actuator made from a carbon nanotube and silicone rubber composite. Potential applications of this design include artificial hearts, sensors and soft robots.
Actuators convert energy in various forms directly to mechanical energy, in this case behaving like muscles in response to a stimulus. The biomedical community anticipates using actuators to replace damaged muscles. However, actuators’ complexity and poor durability have hindered their foray into the clinical world.
Interested? The full story can be read in Chemistry World.
The actuator's silicone membrane expands to six times its original size
The original article can be read below:
A large-deformation phase transition electrothermal actuator based on carbon nanotube–elastomer composites
Zhiwei Zhou, Qingwei Li, Luzhuo Chen, Changhong Liu and Shoushan Fan
J. Mater. Chem. B, 2016, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C5TB02715B
