Chung-Ang University and Pukyong National University Research Team Develops Soft Actuator Operable at Minus 80 Degrees Celsius

A joint research team from Chung-Ang University and Pukyong National University has developed a new material technology that overcomes the limitations of conventional soft robots, drawing significant attention.

The research teams led by Professor Changyeon Lee from the Department of Chemical Engineering at Chung-Ang University, Professor Daeseok Kim from the Department of Polymer Engineering at Pukyong National University, and Professor Osuji from the University of Pennsylvania have succeeded in developing a liquid crystal elastomer (LCE)-based soft actuator that can operate at ultra-low temperatures of minus 80 degrees Celsius without any performance degradation.

Research team, (from left) Professor Changyeon Lee, Professor Daeseok Kim, integrated master's and doctoral student Hyunsung Kim, master's student Yeongkyung Ha. Provided by Pukyong National University

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Liquid crystal elastomers, which are polymer materials, are attracting attention as a core material technology for next-generation soft robots and artificial muscles due to their ability to undergo mechanical deformation in response to external stimuli such as heat or light.

However, in ultra-low temperature environments such as the polar regions or outer space, where most materials freeze, it has been considered impossible to realize this technology because mechanical deformation of the material is difficult to achieve.

The research team developed an original process technology that uses liquid crystal molecules to exfoliate low-dimensional nanomaterials such as two-dimensional molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) at high concentrations and stably disperse them for over a year. Using this process, they were able to incorporate photothermal nanomaterials into the liquid crystal elastomer at high concentrations.

As a result, thanks to the strong photothermal response of the highly concentrated nanomaterials, the team successfully implemented a soft actuator capable of mechanical deformation using only near-infrared light, even at extremely low temperatures of minus 80 degrees Celsius.

The research team confirmed that the flexible actuator they developed was able to lift objects weighing more than 100 times its own weight at minus 80 degrees Celsius without any loss of performance.

Furthermore, through modeling, the team predicted that the developed actuator could operate in the ultra-low temperature environment of deep space (3K) using low-intensity near-infrared light.

Image of research on liquid crystal elastomer soft actuators operable at ultra-low temperatures.

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Professor Changyeon Lee stated, "This research is significant as it dramatically expands the operating temperature range of conventional soft actuators, and we expect it to pave the way for the use of soft robots in extreme environments such as the polar regions and outer space."

This research was supported by the Global Research Laboratory Program of the National Research Foundation of Korea and the Next-Generation Advanced OLED Professional Training Program of the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (KIAT).

The research findings were published this month in the internationally renowned journal in the field of materials chemistry (IF: 19) under the title 'High-Concentration Mesogen-Assisted Exfoliation of Low-Dimensional Nanomaterials for Achieving Ultralow-Temperature Actuations of Liquid Crystal Elastomers.'

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