Disc-shaped ionic polymer metal composites for use in mechano-electrical applications

Previously, mechano-electrical energy harvesting from IPMC has been studied in the conventional bender configuration. However, for mechano-electrical energy harvesting from uncontrolled or multi-directional vibration, there is a need to produce 2D and/or 3D IPMCs. In addition, the conventional bender configuration of IPMC may impose restriction on its application as an energy harvester. For these reasons, there is a need to advance the geometry of the IPMC. In this paper, a new configuration, a disc-type IPMC, is introduced. The disc IPMC was manufactured by hot pressing Nafion pellets. The voltage across the disc on deformation was extracted using two-electrode systems.