Summary: To develop ionic polymer‐metal composites (IPMC) with improved performance, three new ion‐exchange membranes were prepared and employed in IPMC construction. The membranes were prepared by radiation‐grafting of polystyrene sulfonic acid onto three fluoropolymers; poly(vinylidenefluoride‐co‐hexafluoropropylene), poly(ethylene‐co‐tetrafluoroethylene), and poly(tetrafluoroethylene‐co‐hexafluoropropylene). The bending displacements of the IPMCs constructed with these membranes were at least several times larger than that of Nafion IPMC of similar thickness without straightening‐back. The larger displacement was considered to be due to the higher concentration of ionic groups and consequent larger ion‐exchange capacity.
Actuation of (a) Nafion IPMC and (b) IPMC prepared in this study.
