Mechanical Characterization of Artificial Muscle

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will demonstrate the commercial feasibility of conducting polymer muscle-like actuators as active elements in prosthetics, pumps and automatic valves. Rigorous characterization has been performed, demonstrating the active stress, strain, power to mass and efficiency of actuators in which the active element is a thin film of the conducting polymer polypyrrole. Studies show that polypyrrole actuators generate up to 100 times the force per cross-sectional area of mammalian skeletal muscle, and up to 10 times the work per stroke. Conducting polymers convert electrical energy to mechanical work at low applied voltages (typically 1 V), and increase in speed as the film thickness is reduced, making them ideal for micro and nanoscale applications such as micro-pumping and fluid switching. The commercial potential will be for polymer driven artificial urinary sphincters and low cost automatic irrigation valves. Later applications include incorporation into micro and nano-devices.