High actuation performance offered by simple diene rubbers

Dielectric elastomers are materials well known for their superior actuation behavior under applied electric field. The simplicity of material fabrication and clear working principle of dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) can offer various applications of dielectric elastomers. In this work, we have compared a number of different types of commercially available elastomers in terms of actuation performance. It was found that well‐known commercial rubbers like acrylonitrile‐butadiene rubbers (NBR) can offer higher actuation performance in DEAs than the frequently used dielectric elastomers, such as acrylic rubber and silicone. The acrylonitrile content of the NBR was found to play an important role in the dielectric and consequently actuation properties. More interestingly, we observed that addition of organic oil, such as dioctyl adipate, can greatly enhance the actuation performance. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.