Electrically conductive carbon black/electrospun polyamide 6/poly(vinyl alcohol) composite based strain sensor with ultrahigh sensitivity and favorable repeatability

Carbon black (CB)/polyamide 6 (PA6)/poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) electrically conductive polymer composites were fabricated by embedding conductive CB/electrospun PA6 fibrous mat into PVA matrix. Here, the electrospun PA6 fibrous network was applied as the skeleton to pre-construct conductive channels by decorating CB particles on the surfaces of PA6 fibers; the PVA was used as matrix to protect the pre-produced conductive network. For the strain sensing performances, a very high gauge factor (GF, 9706.9) has been achieved, showing a large sensitivity. Cyclic tension tests display that the conductive fibrous composite shows distinguishing sensing behaviors towards varying tensile strain. The strain sensor also has excellent repeatability and durability during long-term stretching-releasing cycles. This work provides a facile and novel strategy to develop strain sensors combined with high sensitivity and excellent stability for human health detections. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.