Ionic Polymer–Metal Composite Actuators Obtained from Radiation-Grafted Cation- and Anion-Exchange Membranes

Two series of ionic polymer-metal composites (IPMCs), one cationic and one anionic, are designed and prepared from radiation-grafted ion-exchange membranes. Through examination of the properties of the membranes synthesized from the two grafting monomers and the two base polymers, acrylic acid-grafted poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) and quarternized 4-vinylpyridine-grafted poly(ethylene-co-tetrafluoroethylene) with the appropriate amount of ionic groups are employed for the fabrication of cation and anion IPMCs, respectively. The bending displacement of the cation IPMC is comparable to Nafion-based IPMC under direct- and alternating-current voltage, but back-relaxation is not observed. The actuation performance of the anion IPMC is highly improved over those reported earlier in the literature for the other anion IPMCs.