Zonyl FS-300 is a water-based ethoxy non-ionic fluorocarbon surfactant that does not contain any organic solvents. It is compatible with any other ionic surfactant and is not affected by polyvalent cations in solution. Due to its high cloud point and good pH stability, Zonyl FS-300 can be used as an ideal wetting and leveling agent in various water-based product formulations.
Zonyl FS-300 can also be used as an adhesive, which can significantly increase the wetting and penetration ability of the substrate, improve product adhesion, and is compatible with most water-based formulas; the application of Zonyl FS-300 can effectively slow down alkalinity corrosion of zinc electrodes in batteries.
Researchers have developed a smart foam material made from Zonyl FS-300 that allows robots to sense nearby objects and repair themselves when damaged, much like human skin.
This smart foam is called AiFoam (Artificially innervated foam), which is highly elastic polymer mixed with a fluoropolymer and a compound that lowers surface tension. This allows AiFoam to easily fuse into one piece (self-healing) when cut.
The steps for making smart foam are as follows:
1. The fluorosurfactant (Zonyl FS-300) needs to be dried in an oven at 70 °C.
2. Dissolve poly(vinylidene fluoride)-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-HFP) (3M) in acetone and stir for at least 4 hours.
3. Add 1.7ml of fluorosurfactant to the solution and stir for 24 hours.
4. Add 46 microliters of 1,3-diaminopropane (DAP) dropwise into the stirring solution. After 30 minutes of reaction, the solution will turn light yellow.
5. Add μNi particles to the solution and mix the solution using a SpeedMixer (FlackTek) at 2500 rpm for 2.5 min.
6. Cast the mixture into a 2.5×5×0.2cm glass mold.
7. The material is then placed on a hot plate and heated at 70°C for 30 minutes to self-foam by evaporating the acetone.
8. To cross-link the polymer, heat the material to 120 °C and hold for 30 minutes.
Inspired by the architecture of the human somatosensory innervations, the team proposed a new structure that uses three-dimensional (3D) metal wire electrodes as "nerves", and embedded them in low-modulus self-healing foam. Compared with other foam-based sensors, the self-healing foam material synthesized by the team only has a low modulus of 600kpa (low modulus tensile modulus MPa≤0.4 or ≤0.6) and is elastic, providing restoring force to contact force sensors. By heating it to 70 degrees Celsius over four days, the material healed about 70 percent and could still be stretched to almost twice its length (180 percent).
To replicate human touch, the researchers infused the material with tiny metal particles and added tiny electrodes beneath the foam's surface. When pressure is applied, the metal particles move closer together in the polymer matrix, changing their electrical properties. These changes can be detected by the computer's electrodes, which then issue instructions telling the robot what to do.
AiFoam achieves high awareness of the surrounding environment by simulating human touch, and the material's unique self-healing properties and sensitivity to contact forces will enable robots to better judge human intentions. A new generation of robots developed using this material will be able to respond faster and more effectively to environmental changes.
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Reference
- Artificially innervated self-healing foams as synthetic piezo-impedance sensor skins
Nature Communications
