Photo-Responsivity Improvement of Photo-Mobile Polymers Actuators Based on a Novel LCs/Azobenzene Copolymer and ZnO Nanoparticles Network
Domenico Sagnelli,
Marcella Calabrese,
Olga Kaczmarczyk,
Massimo Rippa,
Ambra Vestri,
Valentina Marchesano,
Kristoffer Kortsen,
Valentina Cuzzucoli Crucitti,
Fulvia Villani,
Fausta Loffredo,
Carmela Borriello,
Giuseppe Nenna,
Mariacristina Cocca,
Veronica Ambrogi,
Katarzyna Matczyszyn,
Francesco Simoni,
Lucia Petti
Affiliations
Domenico Sagnelli
Institute of Applied Sciences and Intelligent Systems of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
Marcella Calabrese
Institute of Applied Sciences and Intelligent Systems of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
Olga Kaczmarczyk
Institute of Applied Sciences and Intelligent Systems of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
Massimo Rippa
Institute of Applied Sciences and Intelligent Systems of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
Ambra Vestri
Institute of Applied Sciences and Intelligent Systems of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
Valentina Marchesano
Institute of Applied Sciences and Intelligent Systems of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
Kristoffer Kortsen
School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
Valentina Cuzzucoli Crucitti
Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
Fulvia Villani
ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Portici Research Centre, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy
Fausta Loffredo
ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Portici Research Centre, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy
Carmela Borriello
ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Portici Research Centre, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy
Giuseppe Nenna
ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Portici Research Centre, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy
Mariacristina Cocca
Institute for Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
Veronica Ambrogi
Department of Chemical, Materials and Production Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, 80125 Naples, Italy
Katarzyna Matczyszyn
Advanced Materials Engineering and Modelling Group, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wybrzeze Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370 Wroclaw, Poland
Francesco Simoni
Institute of Applied Sciences and Intelligent Systems of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
Lucia Petti
Institute of Applied Sciences and Intelligent Systems of CNR, 80072 Pozzuoli, Italy
The efficiency of photomobile polymers (PMP) in the conversion of light into mechanical work plays a fundamental role in achieving cutting-edge innovation in the development of novel applications ranging from energy harvesting to sensor approaches. Because of their photochromic properties, azobenzene monomers have been shown to be an efficient material for the preparation of PMPs with appropriate photoresponsivity. Upon integration of the azobenzene molecules as moieties into a polymer, they act as an engine, allowing fast movements of up to 50 Hz. In this work we show a promising approach for integrating ZnO nanoparticles into a liquid crystalline polymer network. The addition of such nanoparticles allows the trapping of incoming light, which acts as diffusive points in the polymer matrix. We characterized the achieved nanocomposite material in terms of thermomechanical and optical properties and finally demonstrated that the doped PMP was better performing that the undoped PMP film.
