A Numerical Investigation the Effects of the Voltage on the Displacement and Stress of Copper-based Ionic Polymer-Metal Composites

Ionic polymer material composites (IPMCs) are a group of polymeric material which deform by applying voltage and the movement of cations of polymer; it should be mentioned that the finite element method using electromechanics equations can be used to analyze these types of problem and measure the deformation. This phenomenon can causes bending and internal stress. This research, it is tried to investigate the displacement and stress of IPMC by modeling and finite element method analysis. Firstly, a 2D IPMC is designed; then the materials are applied which are cooper for the electrodes and Nafion for the polymeric core. After applying boundary conditions and meshing, the results have been analyzed by the finite element method. It is found that the relation between voltage and its effect on the bending displacement of IPMC is direct. The conclusions include the maximum displacement of IPMC membrane under the voltage of 5V is 0.42 mm and the maximum Von Mises stress on the electrode is gained 3.29×1016 (N/m2).