Razzaq, M.Y.; Balk, M.; Mazurek-Budzyńska, M.; Schadewald, A. From Nature to Technology: Exploring Bioinspired Polymer Actuators via Electrospinning. Polymers2023, 15, 4029.
Razzaq, M.Y.; Balk, M.; Mazurek-Budzyńska, M.; Schadewald, A. From Nature to Technology: Exploring Bioinspired Polymer Actuators via Electrospinning. Polymers 2023, 15, 4029.
Razzaq, M.Y.; Balk, M.; Mazurek-Budzyńska, M.; Schadewald, A. From Nature to Technology: Exploring Bioinspired Polymer Actuators via Electrospinning. Polymers2023, 15, 4029.
Razzaq, M.Y.; Balk, M.; Mazurek-Budzyńska, M.; Schadewald, A. From Nature to Technology: Exploring Bioinspired Polymer Actuators via Electrospinning. Polymers 2023, 15, 4029.
Abstract
Nature has always been a source of inspiration for the development of novel materials and devices. In particular, polymer actuators that mimic the movements and functions of natural organisms have been of great interest due to their potential applications in various fields, such as biomedical engineering, soft robotics, and energy harvesting. During recent years, the development and actuation performance of electrospun fibrous meshes with the advantages of high permeability, surface area and easy functional modification, has received extensive attention from researchers. This review covers the recent progress in the state-of-the-art electrospun actuators based on commonly used polymers such as stimuli-sensitive hydrogels, shape-memory polymers (SMPs), and electroactive polymers. The design strategies inspired by nature such as hierarchical systems, layered structures, responsive interfaces to enhance the performance, and functionality of these actuators including the role of biomimicry to create devices that mimic the behavior of natural organism are discussed. Finally, the challenges and future directions in the field, with a focus on the development of more efficient and versatile electrospun polymer actuators that can be used in a wide range of applications, are addressed. The insights gained from this review can contribute to the development of advanced and multifunctional actuators with improved performance and expanded application possibilities.
Chemistry and Materials Science, Polymers and Plastics
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
