Soft actuators built from cellulose paper: A review on actuation, material, fabrication, and applications

Cellulose paper, a material that is naturally derived, low cost, lightweight, eco-friendly, and mechanically deformable, plays important roles in producing next-generation flexible electronics. Following the booms in the development of functional electronics, the soft actuators built from cellulose paper have attracted great attention. In this focused review, the milestones and recent achievements of cellulose paper-based actuators are summarized. Electro-, thermal, moisture and magnetic actuation mechanisms are utilized to acquire energy from external stimuli. Corresponding functional materials and available fabrication techniques like film assembly and layer deposition are described. Programmable actions for the emerging applications in bionics, paper grippers and robots are realized by pursuing different strategies to control the responding deformation. Along with a conclusion, the existing challenges and possible solutions in evaluating and improving the performance of cellulose paper are summarized in the final section. (C) 2021 The Authors. Publishing services by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

Automated summary

This review summarizes the milestones and recent achievements of cellulose paper-based actuators, discussing the application of cellulose paper in electro-, thermal, moisture, and magnetic actuation mechanisms, as well as available fabrication techniques. It also emphasizes the programmable actions of cellulose paper in emerging applications and the challenges it faces.