Highly stretchable self-sensing actuator based on conductive photothermally-responsive hydrogel

Soft robots built with active soft materials have been increasingly attractive. Despite tremendous efforts in soft sensors and actuators, it remains extremely challenging to construct intelligent soft materials that simultaneously actuate and sense their own motions, resembling living organisms’ neuromuscular behaviors. This work presents a soft robotic strategy that couples actuation and strain-sensing into a single homogeneous material, composed of an interpenetrating double-network of a nanostructured thermo-responsive hydrogel poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) and a light-absorbing, electrically conductive polymer polypyrrole (PPy). This design grants the material both photo/thermal-responsiveness and piezoresistive-responsiveness, enabling remotely-triggered actuation and local strain-sensing. This self-sensing actuating soft material demonstrated ultra-high stretchability (210%) and large volume shrinkage (70%) rapidly upon irradiation or heating (13%/°C, 6-time faster than conventional PNIPAAm). The significant deswelling of the hydrogel network induces densification of percolation in the PPy network, leading to a drastic conductivity change upon locomotion with a gauge factor of 1.0. The material demonstrated a variety of precise and remotely-driven photo-responsive locomotion such as signal-tracking, bending, weightlifting, object grasping and transporting, while simultaneously monitoring these motions itself via real-time resistance change. The multifunctional sensory actuatable materials may lead to the next-generation soft robots of higher levels of autonomy and complexity with self-diagnostic feedback control.     

Hypoxia/Temperature/pH Triple Stimuli–Responsive Block Copolymers: Synthesis,Self-Assembly,and Controlled Drug Release

The amphiphilic block copolymer poly(methacrylic acid-co-2-nitroimidazole acrylate)-b-poly(2-(N,N-dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) (P(MAA-co-NIMA)-b-PDMAEMA) with the hypoxia/temperature/pH triple responsiveness is synthesized by reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization (RAFT), hydrolysis, and 3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-1-ethylcarbodiimide (EDC) reactions, and successfully self-assembled into micelles. The hypoxia response in vitro is realized, and then the sensitivity of the self-assembled micelles to the hypoxia condition is studied by controlling the grafting amount of aminated 2-nitroimidazole. Because 2-(N,N-dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) is a typical material sensitive to temperature and pH conditions, the self-assembled micelles are also responsive to temperature and different acidic/basic conditions. In addition, the cumulative release rate of doxorubicin (DOX) at 42 °C, pH = 6.0, and hypoxic conditions increases significantly, and verifies the synergistic promotion effect of the above stimulations. This intelligent polymer with triple response mechanism improves the controllability and efficiency of drug release, and is expected to be a drug carrier for cancer treatment.     

Preparation of pH‐sensitive poly(vinyl alcohol‐g‐methacrylic acid) and poly(vinyl alcohol‐g‐acrylic acid) hydrogels by gamma ray irradiation and their insulin release behavior

A series of pH‐responsive hydrogels were studied as potential drug carriers for the protection of insulin from the acidic environment of the stomach before releasing in the small intestine. Hydrogels based on poly(vinyl alcohol) networks grafted with acrylic acid or methacrylic acid were prepared by a two‐step process. Poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels were prepared by gamma ray irradiation (50 kGy) and then followed by grafting either acrylic acid or methacrylic acid onto these poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels with subsequent irradiation (5–20 kGy). These graft hydrogels showed pH‐sensitive swelling behavior and were used as carriers for the controlled release of insulin. The in vitro release of insulin was observed for the insulin‐loaded hydrogels in a simulated intestinal fluid (pH 6.8) but not in a simulated gastric fluid (pH 1.2). The release behavior of insulin in vivo in a rat model confirmed the effectiveness of the oral delivery of insulin to control the level of glucose. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 636–643, 2004     

Shape memory polymers based on uniform aliphatic urethane networks

Aliphatic urethane polymers have been synthesized and characterized, using monomers with high molecular symmetry, to form amorphous networks with very uniform supermolecular structures, which can be used as photo‐thermally actuable shape memory polymers (SMPs). The monomers used include hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI), trimethylhexamethylenediamine (TMHDI), N,N,N′,N′‐tetrakis(hydroxypropyl)ethylenediamine (HPED), triethanolamine (TEA), and 1,3‐butanediol (BD). The new polymers were characterized by solvent extraction, NMR, XPS, UV/VIS, DSC, DMTA, and tensile testing. The resulting polymers were found to be single phase amorphous networks with very high gel fraction, excellent optical clarity, and extremely sharp single glass transitions in the range of 34–153°C. Thermomechanical testing of these materials confirms their excellent shape memory behavior, high recovery force, and low mechanical hysteresis (especially on multiple cycles), effectively behaving as ideal elastomers above T_g. We believe these materials represent a new and potentially important class of SMPs, and should be especially useful in applications such as biomedical microdevices. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2007     

灵敏负荷在配电网控制中的约束条件和容量估算

论述了配电网中的灵敏负荷,作为资源的灵敏负荷所具有的特点,给出了灵敏负荷控制系统的示意图。重点讨论了灵敏负荷优化控制约束条件以及相关的数学模型,即在考虑某些实际问题的情况下,给出了灵敏负荷最优控制的约束条件,设定了关闭和正常运行两种状态的约束关系,在限定的必要条件下,求解最优化目标函数。以沈阳市为例,根据所测日负荷数据分析曲线图,对灵敏负荷的容量进行了估算,对于指导灵敏负荷控制起到重要的作用和实用效果。利用好灵敏负荷资源,对提高电力系统的稳定性,降低运行成本有着重要的实际意义。     

响应型供应链中供应商综合能力的评价研究

随着全球制造的出现,供应链管理在制造业管理中得到普遍应用,成为一种新的管理模式,供应商选择是其中一个研究的热点。不同供应链中供应商选择是有所不同的,因此供应商选择方案应该结合企业所处供应链的类型来确定。在对响应型供应链特征进行分析的基础上,建立了一套适用于制造企业的供应商评价指标体系,并用模糊综合评价法结合实例加以验证。     

Disquiet in the plasma

The metaphor of plasma is taken up to present and discuss movement and engagement by participants in mixed reality installation arts. Two works involving full body video portraits exhibited through large plasma screens in a variety of public settings are covered. Machinic mediations of video realism are considered in terms of embodied interaction in which viewer-participants contribute to the ‘disquiet’ of gendered figuring. Processural, proximal and personal aspects of responsive engagement are discussed. This is extended to performativity that may lead us to critical reflection of our own actions and responses in mixed reality arts.     

Thermally Responsive Fibers for Versatile Thermoactivated Protective Fabrics

Smart textiles with good mechanical adaptability play an important role in personal protection, health monitoring, and aerospace applications. However, most of the reported thermally responsive polymers has long response time and poor processability, comfort, and wearability. Skin-core structures of thermally responsive fibers with multiple commercial fiber cores and temperature-responsive hydrogel skins are designed and fabricated, which exhibit rapid mechanical adaptability, good thermohardening, and thermal insulation. This universal method enables tight bonding between various commercial fiber cores and hydrogel skins via specific covalently anchored networks. At room temperature, prepared fibers show softness, flexibility, and skin compatibility similar to those of ordinary fibers. As temperature rises, smart fibers become hard, rigid, and self-supporting. The modulus of hydrogel skin increases from 304% to 30883%, showing good mechanoadaptability and impact resistance owing to the synergy between hydrophobic interactions and ionic bonding. Moreover, this synergistic effect leads to an increase in heat absorption, and fibers exhibit good thermal insulation, which reduces the contact temperature of the body surface by ≈25 °C under the external temperature of 95 °C, effectively preventing thermal burns. Notably, the active mechanoadaptability of these smart fibers using conductive fibers as cores is demonstrated. This study provides feasibility for fabricating environmentally adaptive intelligent textiles.     

ATP/pH Dual Responsive Nanoparticle with d‐[des‐Arg10]Kallidin Mediated Efficient In Vivo Targeting Drug Delivery

Inflammation has been reported as one significant hallmark of breast cancer in relation to tumor development, metastasis, and invasion. The bradykinin receptor 1 (B1R) is highly expressed on inflammatory breast tumor cells thus providing a promising targeting site for tumor recognition and sufficient receptor mediated endocytosis. In this study, the authors evaluate the targeting efficiency of l ‐form and d ‐form [des‐Arg¹⁰]kallidin both in vitro and in vivo. To further improve the drug delivery efficiency, the authors establish a dandelion like nanoparticle by combining the polymeric drug conjugates and aptamer complex together. The doxorubicin conjugated polymer is complexed with adenosine‐5′‐triphosphate (ATP) sensitive hybridized aptamer in self‐assembly process by intercalating into the double strand scaffolds. The acid labile conjugating bond and ATP sensitive aptamer endow the nanoparticle with dual responsiveness to intracellular milieu, thus triggering a quick drug release in tumor cells. Remarkable therapeutic effects and tuned in vivo pharmacokinetics profiles are shown by the aptamer complexed drug conjugates nanoparticle with B1R active targeting modification. Therefore the strategies of B1R targeting and ATP/pH dual‐responsiveness nanoparticle help achieve enhanced drug accumulation within tumor cells and efficient chemotherapy for breast cancer.