Development and characterization of single wall carbon nanotube–Nafion composite actuators

The development and characterization of thin film polymeric actuators has been performed for single wall carbon nanotube (SWNT)–Nafion composite systems. Previous work in our laboratory illustrated that incorporation of highly conductive SWNTs into an ionomeric matrix promoted an actuation response by enhancing the electro-osmotic effect at relatively low doping levels, ∼0.1% (w/w). Further investigation has shown the effects of frequency and applied voltage on the composite bimorph actuator systems. The results indicate a displacement response that is linearly dependent on voltage and inverse to frequency.